Stitch by Stitch
by Checkmate 24601
Summary: An A-Z drabble collection of Byakuya x Orihime.
1. Chapter 1

**A-Z: Byakuya x Orihime**

**Alibi**

"Where have you been, Inoue?" Kurosaki asked, eyebrows furrowed in his typical scowl though those who knew him well enough would notice that his eyes were softer as he gazed at his auburn _nakama_.

"Ara?" Grey eyes over blushing cheeks met his eyes with no hesitation. "I was just at the Fourth Division. I was trying to find something that I must have dropped there yesterday."

Ichigo gave a nod, turned away, satisfied, unquestioning.

So did everyone else. No one suspected anything. But she too was getting better at concealing.

_Not lying_, Orihime mentally chided herself _because I was with Unohana-taichou briefly. _It was what happened _afterwards_ that she did not reveal.

Feeling a heavy gaze on her, Orihime lifted her eyes, puzzled.

_Only to meet granite grey irises from across the room._

Immediately, Orihime felt heat flood her body as she remembers the feeling of heated, frantic lips; the rustling of _shihakusho _against pink cotton, which blended with the sounds of the wind breezing through the _sakura _orchard; and the rough, coarse feel of bark against her back as she was taken _passionately,_ _again and again_ in the shade of cherry blossoms.

**A/N **I do not own Bleach. Well what do you think? Please review! (That's the only way we will progress through the alphabet. Next one up is B.)

There's no need to feel uncomfortable. All sensual references will only be suggestive, _**not**__ explicit_.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N **This drabble is an AU.

**Baby**

_There she is._

Sharp cobalt eyes detected the petite figure in her green winter cloak, the clicks from her embroidered silk shoes were muffled by the snow drifting down that particularcorridor, known as the _Dangai_. Winter has fallen over the Forbidden City.

As Byakuya silently landed several paces behind the young woman, she stopped. Without turning around, she said with great certainty, _he could hear the smile in her voice, _"Kuchiki-dono." Byakuya marveled at how such a seemingly unassuming female appears to hold the gift of a spiritual sixth sense, _and that is not to mention her other lists of talents, including her healing abilities. _As the young woman turns around to face him, Byakuya drops to a respectful bow, but not before noting that her naturally untraditional auburn hair loosely drapes down on her shoulders, unadorned by her royal headdress, held back by nothing but the two jade hibiscus hairpins gracing her temples – _in a style so natural and intimate that only the Emperor would chance to see when he visits her chambers – _

"Treasured Imperial Consort Inoue."

A huff of fond, exasperated laughter escapes past pale pink lips.

"Kuchiki-dono, only you would find that title not a mouthful. Please, Lady Inoue is fine."

The variations of these similar lines between the two of them are almost like a ritual, a game between the Emperor's minister and the Emperor's beautiful Treasured Consort, second only to the Empress in terms of rank. He would call her by her formal title _as expected of any respectful Minister_, and she would in turn answer with a playful retort to simply call her 'Lady Inoue'.

Except tonight, the playfulness is noticeably lacking, replaced by a tiredness that none of the Royal Court or anyone well acquainted with the Treasured Concubine would expect from the energetic, cheerful young woman.

Byakuya's eyes sobered understandingly. _Of course, that is only to be expected after losing –_

"I'm guessing that since you have found me that Tatsuki and Lily have not seen my note that I was merely going a walk… and that I promise to return safely after a quiet stroll." The young consort interrupted the Kuchiki clan's head leader with a soft, solemn piercing look with her eyes.

Byakuya almost wanted to wince as he remembers the scene he had left behind. There were more subjects worried than just Maids Arisawa and Lily. One particularly furious and anxious male bodyguard by the name of Zanshun Tsubaki had been in such a frantic rage, waving around the dagger his _Ojou-sama_ had bestowed upon him when they first met.

"My Lady," _how Byakuya wishes he was the only one, but no, there are others besides him who speaks this same endearment, accompanied by silent vows of protection and devotion _"your ladies-in-waiting have seen your message, but nevertheless, they worry for you especially after –"

"I know they mean well, Kuchiki-dono." The unspoken _but _hangs in the air between them as they both know why she wishes to be alone.

A miscarriage was something no one in the Royal Court had expected – to think that Aizen, despite his defeat, arrest, and incarceration (and approaching execution) had residual low scullery maids Loly and Menoly pour abortion medicine into Inoue Orihime's carefully monitored diet during her pregnancy…

Byakuya is a concise man, who spares little attention to extra words of comfort or meaningless chatter. _A long time ago, perhaps a different lifetime ago, he would have, pertaining to his beloved, late wife, Hisana_. Even with Rukia, his sister-in-law, who is a replica of Hisana _only by face alone_, he had not been, _is still not,_ kind enough, _to try_. For Byakuya to have no small amount of fondness for a complete stranger with no relations to either him or Rukia, the then newly arrived, exceptionally beautiful but materially poor sixteen year old maiden who had lived by the _Luo _River in Karakura Province as an orphan seamstress after her merchant brother _who had given her those hairpins _had passed away, who had entered the Forbidden City in one of Emperor Yamamoto's Triennial Concubine Sorting Ceremonies five years ago, is nothing short of a miracle.

His personal feelings had been long in developing.

Byakuya's eyes catch on the red lantern Inoue Orihime holds in one hand. A near non-existent smile shadows his lips. _It was the skill in her fingers which won her attention from the Emperor – and from Byakuya. _

Silk shoes.

The Emperor's Royal ceremonial robes.

Red lanterns – _her speciality. _

Fans, hankerchiefs, and hair ornaments for the courtisans and the noblewomen, hanging onto the arms of their ministerial husbands came into being from her delicate, long, slim fingers.

From the thousands of girls selected from all over the country, Inoue Orihime came to apprentice under the Handicrafts and Craftsmanship Department. From out of the shadows, she resembled a nebula as she was acknowledged as a Skilled Royal Maiden.

However, it was her cure of Prince Juushiro, one of Yamamoto's and Unohana's three sons, from his terminal illness, which raised her to Talented Concubine. Yamamoto had a weakness for beautiful women. Empress Unohana as his Queen and Beautiful Consort Matsumoto featuring among his entourage in the Palace of Heavenly Pleasures are evidence enough.

When Lord Aizen, an illegitimate nephew of Emperor Yamamoto's, mounted a rebellion, conspiring to become the new Emperor, the rightful God under the Heavenly Mandate, Inoue Orihime had been kidnapped. Her careful handling of the dangerous situation combined with the aid she received from her close circle of unlikely friends: the Royal Physician-in-training Ishida Uryuu, the blacksmith's apprentice Yasutora Sado, the infamous, brawling, abnormally intelligent Royal Guard soldier-cum-Court Poet – _who in the Seven Heavens would have thought that Kurosaki Ichigo could write poetry, let alone write well enough to spark infuriating comparisons about him and Byakuya? (Byakuya resents but cannot help but understand where the orange-haired brat draws his Inspiration from, who his Muse is) – _and of course, the six orphans turned loyal-beyond-death bodyguards, three girls and three boys, _street urchins _whom Orihime had saved from the streets and whom she had personally named: _Shun'ou, Ayame, Hinagiku, Baigon, Lily, _and of course, _Tsubaki _had saved her and brought about the kind of heroic rescue that wandering bards sing into lore. Since her return to the Forbidden City, Yamamoto had raised her to Treasured Imperial Consort Inoue, second only to Queen Unohana, who had warmly welcomed the young girl back.

Her astonishing rise through the ranks had been _surprisingly _unwanted on her part, and certainly no smooth ascent as detractors and admirers commonly thought. Byakuya could remember no other person who had stood trial, was questioned, had been thrown into prison, exiled, humiliated, bullied and kidnapped so many times as this woman-child standing before him now, but had lived to tell the tales.

_Or rather she did not tell them._ Orihime remains modest, preferring to brush off those dangerous, wild escapades and stories when flatterers and busybodies question her.

_She of all people did not deserve this latest trial – that of a mother losing an unborn child._

Byakuya finally notes the baby rattle in her right hand. The inked design on vellum, stretched over a mini drum, decorated on both sides by two beads on the end of hemp strings. _A gift in preparation for her baby._

_Now a gift for a ghost._

"I planned on letting my baby toddle around the Court of Pure Souls when she would be of walking age… I plan to still show her tonight the home she would have grown up in," Orihime spoke in a trembling voice, ending her sentence with minor conviction.

Byakuya knew Empress Unohana would worry for her Honoured Younger Sister, but he was also aware, perhaps more aware than others gave him credit for, of the pain in losing a child. After all, Hisana had died in childbirth…

"At least allow me to accompany you, My Lady… The frost is setting in…" Byakuya held out his arm, apprehensively waiting.

He lets out a breath he does not realize he was holding when her hand, her pinky wearing the golden finger sheath of one of the highest-ranked concubines, gently grasps his.

"Thank you, Kuchiki-dono."

And thus, beneath a fingernail crescent moon, two shadows walked beside each other in comfortable silence. During that stroll, they were not Concubine or Minister, not former peasant girl and nobleman, not that indefinable, unnamable boundary past Royalty and Subject, but hovering between Friend and perhaps never-touching Loved One, they were just a Man and Woman.

Walking to Remember.

Walking to Grieve.

Walking to Lay Down and Let Go.

Walking to Move On.

Walking…punctuated by the _timp-pang_ sounds of a baby rattle.

**A/N **This is most definitely _not _drabble length, my apologies! But I couldn't resist writing this after re-watching some scenes from the television series War and Beauty.

Actress Sheren Tang inspired my characterization of Orihime as an Imperial Consort. The way she portrays her emotional loss when her baby daughter dies is extremely touching. And yes, this … 'drabble' is set in Ancient China in the Forbidden City, behind the walls of which is a battleground for Imperial Concubines in trying to gain the attention of the Emperor – not for Love, but for personal gains and goals…

I might develop this into a fullblown side story involving Orihime, Rukia and Rangiku as Concubines should there be enough requests for one. *It's up to you to review, Reader! Wink, wink, nudge, nudge*

As always, I do not own Bleach _nor _War and Beauty.


	3. Chapter 3

**Cantabile**

_Song-like._

That is how he always thinks of her. Not in terms of strong or weak, of spirit or human, or other opposing diametrics that Soi Fon and the other common shinigami employ when discussing the _ryoka _cum (recurring) heroes of Soul Society.

Everything about her is like a song, art in motion, _constant movement._

Her voice, a lilting cadence, though in harmony with those of her _nakama_,contrasts from them like diamonds against black velvet.

Her gesturing hands resemble the _crescendos _and _diminuendo _markings on her flute and piano scores, which she had so shyly shared with him upon learning his love for music.

Her laughter … Byakuya has difficulty finding words to describe Inoue Orihime's laughter. Nothing could compare to it. Descriptions were frustratingly insufficient. During the budding of their friendship _and perhaps the occasional underlying flickering of something more_, the nobleman had constantly tried to rationalize and describe his young friend _for a friend she is, no matter how surprising their … relationship has turned out_.

When she accidently smashed her head into his jaw, Byakuya thought of a gong resonantly going off _or was it the clap of a kabuki wooden block?_

Her squeak of surprise when he had first grabbed her behind the shadow of a pillar in the Kuchiki manor was the sound of a new, untested flute.

He remembers her sigh _like the breeze that shakes his sakura trees_ when he stood behind her in the mirror, placing his hands above hers as they trailed the green silk of her sleeping _yukata_ up her thighs, round the curves of her womanly hips to her breasts.

Her gasp, as he places a kiss into the dip between her neck and shoulder.

This song, this duet, they now create in secrecy _their intermingling reiatsus, breaths and moans _in the darkness of his chambers –

_heat, forte, grandissimo, excruciating _but he does not wish it to stop spreading –

the thunder provides the counterpoint to their pleasured cries _Byakuya could not help but think even the Gods are on their side, protecting them_

the most intimate music between a Man and Woman

_naked flesh on naked flesh, intermittently scraping against sensual silk_

His hands explore the dynamics and secrets of her luscious body, rewarded with the whispering of his name in silent ecstasy, a moan, a gasp, a cry of _more, more, molto, __più_.

She responds in kind, discovering the many, many layers of his character _learning to understand, to interpret. _

_The silence of a rest for eight bars – is it consent, approval, anger, possessiveness, jealousy, tenderness, embarrassment?_

The tempo of their bodies – _andante, accelerando, A piacere _(at their pleasure)…

They are like a _fugue _with the melody transitioning, passed between her _mezzo soprano _and his _tenor _lines, changing from _con fuoco _(with fire) to _misterioso _to _pianissimo _(very soft).

If she is the beach, then he is the waves. Both of them meeting each other stroke for stroke. There is no moon to dictate the pull between them. The tides learn the inevitability of his return to the sand _whatever distance Byakuya initially wished to put between them after one night of passion was singlehandedly destroyed as he reached for her, her, only her, again and again._

Learning to love once more, on both their parts _after heartache, heartbreak, loss, _is no different to a pianist returning to the keyboard, fumbling from lack from practice; no different to a tuner learning to understand the old strings of a piano, _forever listening, forever patient, tightening, loosening, listening._

The thunderstorm is no different to the final climax of a concerto.

As daylight peeks in through the shutters and curtains, sunbeams gently tickling two entwined figures beneath the blankets, _in peace, in repose, _one stirred.

Byakuya savours what's left, _the performance is over, _tenderness touching and stroking auburn tendrils, tracing the shell of her ear, actions which wake her. She does not mind. She smiles back at him.

As he watches her dress and going to the window to climb out to return to her rooms, later to greet her friends and Rukia, he is seized by sudden longing, _yes, love_

_he takes her once more. _

Despite knowing the dangers, of which there were many – the servants, his Clan, punishment for involving himself with a human, orange-headed substitute brats raging about robbing the cradle – Byakuya finds himself not caring, _beyond restraints, free. _

As he removes silk once more, tasting sweetness, as quiet gasps, muffled groans and the rustling of silk whisper of their conjoined union once more, Byakuya sends a prayer to the Gods –

_Let their Song never end. _

**A/N **If I'm not mistaken, it was Chopin who described his piano _valses _which were not meant to be danced to, a difference to the traditional music scene at the time, as diamonds on black velvet – because velvet does not detract from the diamonds, the diamonds shine. 

And yes, I do enjoy playing the piano, the trombone, and singing.

As always, _eager for your comments, _please don't leave without reviewing! Readers, you form the _Coda _of the concerto. :)

I do not own Bleach.


	4. Chapter 4

**Dance**

"Oh my God!"

"Is that really – "

"Oh nii-sama…" Rukia sighs in awe and wonder.

"I'm not hallucinating am I, Renji? Could you please punch me?" A smack and a thud of a fallen body sounded.

"Goddamnit, what was that for?" Kurosaki Ichigo rounded on his red-haired Shinigami friend.

"You were the one who asked for it, Kurosaki. Don't ask stupid rhetorical questions," the orange-headed teenager's Quincy companion snorted, pushing up his glasses, which eerily reflected the light from the disco ball on the ceiling, although his words seemed to lack its normal bite of sarcasm and mild-friendly derision.

The sight before their eyes is probably too much for all of them to handle. Sado could not even muster up his usual "Hmm…"

Matsumoto Rangiku was gaping like a fish on dry land. She turned towards her captain who is silent and equally wide-eyed beside her.

"Taichou, are you also seeing what I'm seeing? Kuchiki-taichou is dancing the _tango _with Orihime-chan?"

**A/N **BWAHAHAHA! Oh we ByaHime people could dream right? Byakuya doing the tango? Now wouldn't that be a sight to see, dear readers?

I personally think that he can ace the waltz easily because it suits his nature so well – elegance, grace, sharp footwork – but it is so satisfying to let the Imagination wander (especially after watching Take the Lead starring Antonio Banderas) and ponder whether Byakuya has what it takes to tango with our Orihime-chan!

(Oh, I can't stop laughing… AHAHAHA!)

*In between gasps of laughter, please review, review, and (Byakuya dips Orihime) REVIEW!

No ownership or appropriation of Bleach by me.


	5. Chapter 5

**Eternity**

Ichigo cursed at the entire situation. _How had it come to this?_

He, Chad, Ishida and Inoue had invaded the _Seireitei_, the Court of Pure Souls, the ancient recluse of a mythic species, which until six months prior, he would have scoffed to learn, existed. _Vampires._

Rukia was charged with revealing herself (it had been involuntary – an accident) to humans, and thereafter, not slaying them. So as _nakama _all four of them vowed to rescue Rukia, prevent her execution, and return alive to go back home.

_That had been the plan._

Except now, Kurosaki Ichigo finds himself in a headlock, _a potentially fatal _headlock if Urahara Kisuke's accounts of vampire executions contained a shred of accuracy.

"No, please, no, don't!"

The orange-headed boy feared, brown eyes widening. _Inoue! _Unable to see her as his head was arced backwards to the domed ceiling of the hall they just entered, he traced her spirit pressure with his _shinigami _powers.

"Ahh, so you do know what this position means… Inoue Orihime." Ichigo grimaced. _How the hell had they known…_

"We know everything we need about you – all of you." Ichigo strained to see the speaker. A white-bearded man with a staff stood, raised on a platform. "Invaders here to rescue a traitor… odd indeed even for your kind…humans." Twelve additional vampires, the Royal Guards, were scattered about the circular hall, some of them restraining his friends. Out of his peripheral vision, he could see Ishida, the last of the Quincy race, in the hands of an indifferent female vampire. Chad, his Mexican friend who possessed the impossible strength of a First Nation's Bear clan, has been pinned down by multiple vampires. And Inoue…

"All of you will suffer for placing your faith in this reckless boy." Ichigo felt the hands gripping his throat and hair tighten.

"Please, NO!"

There was a sudden scuffle but an eerie silence suddenly stretched. Ichigo found himself free to turn his head cautiously. The sight that greeted him made his blood run cold. Inoue had escaped the grip of her captors and used her hairpin to slice her forearm. All the vampires in the room were fixated, eyes turning red, nostrils flaring, on her blood running freely down her hand onto the marble floor in silent drips.

"Fae blood." A voice hissed. Then everything exploded into chaos.

Ichigo did not know, but vampires as ancient as the _Gotei 13 _had developed their senses to the point that they can detect the emotions and characteristics of their prey through the latter's spilt blood.

_Courage._

Zaraki Kenpachi breathed in that heady scent of sudden fearlessness and self-sacrifice, his blood starting to thrum from the possibility of a fight with the petite _ryoka._

_Kindness._

The ice within Hitsugaya Toushirou's aqua eyes burned with greater chilling intensity. The hunger for a genuine friendship, a companion, struck once more after three centuries of cold isolation.

_Healing. Youth._

For a crazy instant, Ukitake Jyuushiro sees his salvation to his incurable disease, a release to his five thousand years of pain and plaguing coughing of blood.

_Beauty. Innocence._

Matsumoto Rangiku gazed appreciatively at the young human girl, cutting her tongue on her fangs. She too was surprised. It has been years since she found a prey that excited her to such a state, enough to cause a juvenile reaction such as slicing her tongue with her fangs.

They all tried to grab her. None of them succeeded. Their infighting for a common prey was broken up by an unexpected vampiric lord.

All eyes gazed in surprise at the unexpected victor now holding Orihime, pinned against him.

"Kuchiki," Hitsugaya hissed in displeasure at the tall, pale figure with white _kenseikan _in his hair. Ichigo panicked. He recognized Rukia's brother whom he had unsuccessfully fought with when Rukia was being taken away.

"Inoue!" he shouted. His trapped friend gazed back at him helplessly, unaware of the dangerous shifting mood of her captor who was now alternating between looking at her and Ichigo. Orihime was unaware of the possessive gleam that was shining ever brighter in Kuchiki Byakuya's grey irises, unaware of the intoxicating, provocative and tempting scent of her blood to a vampire who had denied himself a paramour for millennia since his last beloved.

"Ichi-"

"Inoue!" Ichigo could only look on helplessly as Byakuya sank his fangs into Orihime's throat, marking her forever as his.

**A/N **As much as I dislike Twilight, it is true that this scene was partly inspired by it. Teehee, we're moving again to an AU although this time it's more supernatural.

I know there isn't much ByaHime interaction this time, but bear with me, exams make me temporarily cynical and ignorant of tender love. Anyways, gotta go now. Don't forget to leave behind a review.

(Thank you to nypsy, Kohryu, cassjaerinmiyasha, VitaeCursus, and Shippoliver for being such faithful reviewers! I greatly appreciate your time and comments!) To everyone else, please review … with raspberries and chocolate sprinkles on top… relieve me of the depressive atmosphere of upcoming exams. Lol

I do not own Bleach.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N **Dear minna-san, apologies for being away for so long, but unfortunately, we do not determine when Life's Curveballs are thrown at us … and how many at one time. Said curveballs include but are not limited to flat hunting, moving, illness and charity work which have left me physically too drained to even lift a finger to type out my ideas.

I will try to update as much as possible, especially my ByaHime works :D

So without further ado, here is F. (P.S. This entry is a side story to my other work _She's No Traitor _to Unohana Retsu's POV of Orihime – which has yet to be posted -_-.)

**Fever**

_Fire._

It felt like someone had trapped the Sun beneath her skin and lit a fire under her back. The cool sheets beneath and covering her offered little respite as they gradually became soaked with sweat.

_Maybe she has become one of those cakes that Mogi-san at ABCookies would slide into the oven – melting from the heat. Wait… cakes and bread are supposed to rise, aren't they?_

There was a pounding in her temples which refused to go away.

_Little green men with tiny machetes and war drums (maybe they were tribal mini-men) were dancing around the campfire in her brains! Maybe they were aliens-_

Bang!

The sole occupant in the bed furrowed her brow. Her eyes were heavy and refusing to obey her to open. _A disturbance from far away?_ She felt like she was underwater where all voices and sounds were muffled. It didn't make sense. Words, which she might have understood individually when she was healthy, simply didn't register when strung together _like beads in a necklace _into sentences in her current state.

"_Oh Kami-"_

"_How could … have happened?!"_

Cool fingers brushed her forehead, drawing back immediately as though singed.

"_She's burning!"_

Another set of fingers travelled across her forehead, brushing away damp bangs, lingering. They were cool, pleasant. The patient let out a sigh, pushing against the hand, trying to get more contact, unconsciously seeking more of that cool touch. She became more aware that the noises above her were becoming louder.

"_Why was she-"_

"… _requested and thought … no harm"_

"_unseated, not even a Shinigami-"_

"_entirely unexpected-"_

"_-no excuses… had no business there!"_

"_came back, exhibited no symptoms until … day later"_

"_taichou…allowed? … poorest part of …slums… 56__th__ District, Rukon-"_

So loud. These voices, whoever they belonged to, were so harsh and angry. _So much like her birth parents, who were equally shadowy shapes, and yelled incomprehensible accusations at each other._

Orihime whimpered, inadvertently causing the ruckus to die down. "Please okaa-san, otou-san, please… don't argue anymore. So painful… it hurts… Sora-nii-chan… Sora-nii-chan, where are you…"

A messy silhouette of violet eyes and shaggy black hair gazed down at her.

"Tatsuki-chan?"

Said violet eyes widened. _"She doesn't recognize me!"_

_Why was Tatsuki-chan so worried?_ Orihime wondered as she fidgeted restlessly from the heat. She suddenly felt something wet and cold _so soothing _placed on her forehead. The second pair of hands _the ones that lingered _was responsible for this temporary reprieve from persistent heat. _ Could it be…_

"Sora-nii-chan?" The hand faltered for a fraction of a second before continuing to smooth her hair, patting away the sweat lingering on her brows.

"Sleep, Orihime…" It sounded so far away…

"Nii-chan, …stay with me…please" Orihime could not be sure but she thought there was a sharp intake of breath. _Nothing is clear right now. Everything is so blurry, so hot…_

"…_temperature continuing to rise!"_

"…_days…"_

"_severe…said, Never sick…"_

The voices finally faded away, cloth rustling, sliding sandals _tip-tapping_. But those cool hands, that simultaneously cold and warm presence, remained.

The patient could not be sure when she drifted in and out of sleep. The presence was there sometimes, sometimes not. More faces _so many different colours and shapes _floated above her, hazy like a mirage.

She mumbled out cries, pleas and murmured sentences to that presence. _Dear Sora-nii-chan…always taking care of her…_

Words left her lips, forgotten the instant they were past those chapped, dry pink petals, unheeding and blissfully ignorant of the reactions instilled in that nocturnal visitor _(who sometimes dropped by in the early morning and late noon as well). _

"Sora-nii-chan, could you take me to the fields again and teach me how to catch a red dragonfly?"

"Nii-chan, are you there?"Sometimes the response would take the form of a gentle brush or tap on her forehead, a cool glass of water to her lips.

"Red bean toast…with Laksa and Jalapeno peppers…Yum" _(was that shiver from the hand?)_

"Nii-chan, m so lonely…Kuro…love…Byakusan…em schutz a fool…"

_Tenseness? Did she displease nii-chan? Last time, he hadn't been too fond of Kurosaki-kun…_

Then, a soft touch on the forehead.

Not water.

Not fingers. _Even softer._

_A kiss? … maybe… goodnight or get well soon kiss?..._

Time was not measured by the clocks on the yellow wallpaper, but by the ebbing and flowing of chills, shivers and burning foreheads for the patient. Grey-amethyst eyes blinked and lidded, blinked and lidded. It was actually on the fourth day when the fever broke and Orihime finally woke, fully conscious. She recognized Isane-fukutaichou and Unohana-taichou bustle up to her to take her temperature and pulse, checking her throat.

"You've finally recovered!" the tall silver-haired vice-captain sighed in relief. "So many people came to visit you, but you didn't recognize them."

_Was it those sea of faces?_

_Tatsuki-chan…no, it was Kuchiki-san!_

Then everything became clear to Orihime as she remembered the circumstances to how she fell ill. She had gone with Isane to the 56th District of the Rukongai – to heal illnesses, bring medicine and distribute food to the poor. However, there had been a baby _a tiny, tiny baby _who had been ill with scarlet fever. As a last resort, the parents asked for her rejection healing abilities. Orihime had tried, but the baby was too far gone, and had died fifteen minutes later in her arms.

Afterwards when she returned to the Fourth Division, Orihime had immediately taken medicine and briefly alerted Isane about the dead infant although the human girl was not particularly worried. A day later, when training with Rukia on the Thirteenth Division grounds, Orihime had felt slightly dizzy _as though the ground had become the Titanic during its final sinking moments. _Ignoring the lightheadedness, she was walking halfway back to the Kuchiki compound for supper with her raven-haired sparring partner before she collapsed in the middle of the walkway.

"Inoue Orihime-san… you should talk with Kuchiki taichou. He was very worried and stayed many nights by your bedside." Unohana said with gentle firmness.

"Kuchiki taichou… Byakuya-san?!" Carmine spread along the auburn beauty's cheeks as little recollections during her fever started clicking together, piece by piece like a jigsaw puzzle.

"Yes. … He had been … _diligent_ … in visiting you." The elderly woman replied with a careful (impish?) smile.

Said diligent visitor came through the doorway right after those words. Nothing in his countenance, except the relieved cobalt eyes and the slight shadows underneath, betrayed any so-called worry. Nevertheless, Orihime flushed from both the piercing stare, which spoke volumes, and from the female doctor's previous comments. Tactfully, both fourth division captain and vice-captain discreetly made their exit, leaving the couple some privacy to speak.

Orihime waited with baited breath for the Kuchiki clan leader to start speaking… which did not seem likely as she took in the narrowing, implicitly reproaching, gray eyes, which did not waver in its scorching intensity as they glared at her _challenging her to set the conversation_.

_Oh well, might as well take the plunge, Orihime! 1, 2, … - _

"Have you _any_ idea how dangerously high your fever was? I understood you came to Soul Society to train with Rukia to be stronger. … I fail to understand, however, how that equates to going with the Fourth Division to the Rukongai to heal _en masse _the sick there." Byakuya said, a cutting tone _worthy of the wielder of Senbonzakura _interlaced with his typical nonchalant voice. He took in Orihime's nervous fiddling with her hair, willing himself not to be distracted by its atypical colour.

"I simply wanted to learn some healing _kido … _so I can be useful during the Winter War and heal my _nakama_. Afterall, practice makes perfect. I didn't expect the baby's scarlet fever to affect me so badly… I never really got ill as a child…" Orihime stammered back, finding the green covers of the hospital bed to be of sudden fascination.

"That is besides the point. Even if Rukia was busy that day with her Shinigami duties, there was no reason for you to go to the Rukongai, _especially not without consulting me first." _Orihime looked up sharply in shock. Byakuya gazed back at her, an untraceable look in his eye. "I had to find out through Unohana-taichou about your … _field work _when I came across Rukia and you, _unconscious_, in the street.

Orihime lowered her head miserably. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause such trouble, Byakuya-san, not to you or Kuchiki-san." In her position, she never saw the steel cobalt soften to a kinder gray. It was a hand gently holding her chin which lifted her face.

The soft touch alighted onto her forehead, to verify for himself whether her fever was fully broken.

"Just _don't _frighten me like that again…Orihime."

And she could only gaze into pools of eternity, and nod.

**A/N **Minna-san, please leave behind a review. Those are always encouraging, much loved and appreciated. Arigato gozaimasu!

I do not own Bleach. *sigh*


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N **I know I've been away for a long time. So sorry; too many things to handle with too little time! To make up for my absence, here's a glut of submissions for the next few letters of the alphabet. Enjoy!

Just a little rant: ByaHime is a crack pairing largely because they have so little interaction and onscreen time so I had a moment of over-excitement when I found a small moment between them in Bleach movie 4 – that short moment Byakuya actually looks around for Orihime to help Ichigo's sister Yuzu. … AAAAHHHHH! :P Anyways, on with the story…

**Glance**

It had only been a glance, and yet, he had stared for too long.

"Go in."

"Yes!"

_Stared after a flowing mane of liquid sunshine and gazelle-like limbs, bounding with eagerness to help – _

"An ignorant fool," Kuchiki Byakuya murmured as he paused in his paperwork, ink brush elegantly poised over the mounds of emergency filing that came pouring into his office relating to the appearance of the crumbling Hell's Gates.

"Taichou?"

The Kuchiki clan leader raised his eyes to gaze at his vice-captain with one slightly raised brow. "I said nothing Renji…return to your work." Those words, harsh in their selection, contained no true malice or typical dry sarcasm. Abarai Renji kept his look of doubt though years with the Sixth Division's captain taught him to keep mum.

"What is the condition of the human girl?"

Renji started, believing he had been dismissed. Rallying his thoughts, he was reminded that Kuchiki taichou was asking him a question.

"Ichigo's _imouto_? She's resting now… she ought to thank her lucky stars that the Hell's chain had somehow dissolved."

Kuchiki Byakuya wanted to snort _but Kuchikis did not snort or behave inappropriately._

_Luck had nothing to do with it. Can no one truly see it?_

Gazing at Renji's open expression, he concluded that the answer is 'no'. _No one saw it. No one even guessed._

_Inoue Orihime had used her Souten Kisshun healing shield to reject the ningen girl's condition when Kurosaki Ichigo brought his sister back from Hell. The shield had shattered after momentarily rippling. The cold, unchanged state of Kurosaki Yuzu had prompted a near emotional and mental breakdown in the Substitute Shinigami, who had been nearly violent in shaking his nakama to "save Yuzu, Inoue! I beg of you! What's wrong?! Oi Inoue, why can't you save her?!"_

_Since the defeat of Aizen, the human healer's rejection powers had grown exponentially through rigorous self-training and discipline although adequate attention or sufficient praise had hardly been given. But a Mortal's power, no matter how significant, has a force to reckon with, and in this given situation, a hellish Force from the pits of the Netherworld. _

_Orihime's healing abilities may not have worked instantaneously…but who's to argue that Kurosaki Yuzu's return to the Land of the Living was not the product of a delayed healing reaction? If one were to look at the event closely, the causal link is definitely present regardless of the lag time…_

Byakuya drew breath to question Renji's notion of luck when a stray thought entered his mind.

_Lucky stars…_

_Star weaver…_

… _Weaving Princess_

Renji could only stare in bafflement when his Captain said, "Yes, she ought to thank her Lucky Star indeed."

**A/N **Oh Renji, always left in the dark at Byakuya's little observations and the ever-occasional moments of humour!

This entry is based on my belief of how Yuzu recovered in the fourth Bleach movie. As useful as Luck or Coincidence is which Kubo or the scriptwriters may have attributed to Yuzu's recovery, Orihime's healing powers shouldn't be so easily dismissed. Her shield had surrounded Yuzu before shattering. There is a possibility that the later dissolving of Yuzu's Hell chain was a delayed reaction of Orihime's healing.

Oh we can dream, can't we ByaHime supporters?

Don't forget to leave behind a review! So, so looking forward to hearing your feedback from you, Reader-san!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N **On with the alphabet! I'm trying to make up to all of you my absence with a series of chapters. So don't forget to leave behind a review!

Here is 'H'! (It's an AU :)

**VERY IMPORTANT WARNING**: this chapter contains slight lime at the end. **On the border between T and M, so do not read if you will feel uncomfortable.** I repeat, do not read if you are not comfortable with lime, citrus, etc. (I am adding a different H entry in the following chapter, K rated, for readers who may be uncomfortable with T/M rating. So skip to the next chapter if needed.)

**Hallucination**

Her hand paused above the doorknob, uncertain to proceed or not.

_Get on a grip on yourself, Hime! You're being silly over nothing._

And yet, the beautiful auburn girl could not shake the sense of disquiet wrapping itself _so tenderly _around her. Despite fortifying herself this afternoon at lunch with Tatsuki-chan, telling herself that she will not hoodwink herself with tales of goblins and spirits _no matter how much she adored the musical Phantom of the Opera_, she knew that all the events these past six months were no natural occurrences.

_This is _your _house! Now, conquer your silly fancy Hime. Don't be ridiculous… why would a ghost haunt _you?

'Ahh … now that's the jackpot question, isn't it?' Inoue Orihime sighed as she inserted the key and turned the doorknob.

Stepping inside her flat, she peered around cautiously. Noting that everything in her apartment was as she left it, the eighteen-year old released a loud sigh of relief. Closing the front door and gently cracking her neck to release the tension in her limbs, she dropped her backpack and bakery uniform onto the couch before flopping down unceremoniously. _She was exhausted from her day at university and work! Being a doctor was what she had always dreamed of being… among many other things as a little girl, when Sora-nii-chan…_

Orihime sighed again, closing her eyes against the sting of warmth behind her eyelids. _She was being emotional again. Her brother had passed away seven years ago, and whatever tears there were, had run themselves dry as well… until recently…_

Orihime jumped off the couch in a huff of anger and impatience, furiously rubbing her eyes. _It was all this ghost business, which was agitating her, making her paranoid!_

She stopped beside a sea-green vase next to the television. _Inside were two branches of sakura blossoms. _

Six months ago, Orihime had moved into her new apartment in Karakura Town, having decided to turn over a new leaf after a series of unhappy, wasted years in Tokyo following the death of Sora. This apartment had been her inheritance from a distant aunt, who having neglected both of the Inoue siblings during her life _refusing to care for them, apart from sending a tiny sum of money every three months, despite knowing they were suffering from parental abuse _had provided for them after her death by leaving an apartment to both brother and sister.

Orihime had considered rejecting this belated act of kindness but in the end, had decided to forgive the memory of her aunt. There was the additional benefit that her apartment was not too far from the university where she had enrolled to study medicine. And yet, when she had first stepped foot inside the building, there had been a spine-tingling moment of discomfort… as though someone had been observing her.

But after thoroughly dusting and cleaning out the small flat, she blamed it on her hyperactive imagination _Tatsuki-chan had pointed out teasingly that very few yet-to-be doctors spoke of 'little green men' and sumo-boxing cakes made of red bean paste and cream cheese_. Then the little signs appeared.

_The warmth on the back of her neck, as though someone was not only standing, but breathing behind her… close enough to flutter the tiny hairs on her nape… _

_The melancholy song of a solitary flute during cycles of the full moon…_

_Sakura petals that were randomly found in the kitchen, in her living room…_

_Then branches of sakura … _

Orihime had finally put her foot down when she found a cherry blossom branch in her bedroom… on her pillow. _She had been terrified, fleeing to Tatsuki-chan's flat for a fortnight, confiding in her childhood friend about the going-ons in her home._

When she had returned, Orihime knew what she had to do.

_Exorcize the ghost? Whatever gave Chizuru-chan that strange idea? No, no. She would speak with that spirit. _Orihime wasn't quite so sure why Tatsuki-chan had questioned her sanity following Orihime's declaration. But Orihime had not been joking nor playing dumb. She was not religious by any means, but it was through praying and speaking aloud to Sora's photo following his death that she had felt a reconciliation and a peace within herself. _Her dear brother knew, wherever he is now – most likely in Heaven – that his younger sister has learnt to become happy again and is doing well for herself._

_But this spirit…_

There was nothing malevolent Orihime sensed in _him_. _Yes, the spirit is male. _That much she had ascertained as she identified, beneath the scent of sakura blossoms whenever she felt that presence, a distinct faint tang of sandalwood and iron, _sharp like a katana…_

That presence was also conspicuously absent whenever she was bathing or changing _rather a gentleman almost._

Orihime had hunted around for information. She asked her landlady and her fellow neighbours about the previous tenant of the flat, but was told disappointingly that the flat had been empty for years, under the name of her aunt. There had been no suspicious deaths _and you surely don't believe the local boys' tales of hauntings, are you dearie?_

Any further discussion had to be postponed for that week to avoid unnecessary gossip behind her back. So Orihime had spearheaded another plan of action. She began talking…

"_I'm not sure why you're here Spirit-san, but there's nothing interesting about me… In the movies, you see humans helping spirits accept their passing, but I don't feel that's the case with you. I don't feel any maliciousness from you or anger or bitterness… just a bit of sadness though. Do you need help with something?"_

Orihime had waited but the empty air never spoke back, though the prickling feeling was back.

"_I highly doubt I would resemble a past loved one of yours. My hair is so unusual, and people don't really like it. Some second-years once cut them because of its strange colour…" _

Orihime was not quite sure why she felt a ripple of indignation in the atmosphere, as well as a feeling of something hot and burning, like wrath. _"Not, not that I'm saying that uh, you're attracted to me or anything but … you really shouldn't place flowers in a girl's home. It kinda sends the wrong message if you're not being sincere… Ano, anyways, I don't think you meant it in that sense…"_

Things had almost returned to placid normality when Orihime became aware that her blanket and pyjamas were askew in the morning. She may be full of strange habits and antics, but a fitful sleeper, she was not.

Then the dreams began.

At night, she always dreamt of feverish exploring hands, desperate lips and hot flushed bodies –

She had been mortified and blushing red at these sensations, and woke to find herself disheveled, lips bruised…

_It wasn't possible. It just couldn't be!_

More importantly, _why?!_

Orihime didn't know the answer, and she was becoming scared again. This man, shroud in the shadows of her dreams, knew her by name, had called her repeatedly. But she did not know his. All this time, she never found out what his name was, despite her repeated queries. In a particular steamy dream, she had called out his name, but could not remember it once the cry had passed her lips.

_And those grey eyes continued to gaze at her so urgently, so tenderly and with such sadness…_

_Urging her to remember…_

Unbidden, a melody escaped Orihime.

"Yet in his eyes

Lay all the sadness of the world

Those pleading eyes

That both threaten and adore."

As Orihime prepared for bed that night after turning off the light, there was a prodding sensation to go to the mirror. She hesitated. _What would she see in the glass? Just her reflection? A monster? … A lover?_

She cursed her curiousity as her feet moved forward on their own accord. Slowing as she neared the glass, she held her breath. At first there was nothing, then she saw the shape of a man behind her, becoming clearer and clearer.

_And he was beautiful._

_So why did she want to scream from fear? … from anticipation?_

What was wrong with her?!

To Orihime's horror, his touch was solid this time. Real. Present. _No. Yes._

She had no further chance to think as her lips were captured by demanding lips. A part of her screamed at herself to run while her body and mind languished in a pleasurable fog of inactivity as she was kissed, touched, _ravaged_.

The cold air on her back alerted her to the fact that her nightgown was nowhere to be seen. Then she was tugged onto her knees before the mirror, her back against a strong chest.

_What…?_

Then, heat and a fullness she never knew pooled between her parted legs. Pleasure overruled the pain as she gasped and cried out incoherently as that heated sensation spread along her body. Male hands covering her own cupped and teased her breasts.

The jolting of her hips as they met another repeatedly was an agonizing pleasure, which Orihime never thought existed. She was certain _or is she dreaming, even now, _she screamed as the penetrating strokes met a particularly tender, sweet spot within her, untouched until now, causing her to become boneless and overwhelmed by fire _which was too hot and simultaneously, not enough. _She wanted more. She dreaded more.

And all this time, the spirit is weeping as he kisses her, murmuring unheard words against her lips.

_Who are you?_

_Remember, remember…_

Is this physical joining a desperate resort to force her to remember his name, a tether to anchor her to his memory, his identity? But she doesn't him! In a previous life? … perhaps. She doesn't know. In this state, held in his arms, she can call out his name, but never remember once it leaves her lips. Even now, there is only a blank filled by the intimacy of two entwined bodies.

Is this why he is crying? Because she cannot remember his name? Why does he love her?

Orihime knows nothing. _She could be dreaming. This could be real. She knows his name. She does not. This is Heaven. This is Hell. Nothing but a hallucination. Everything but. _

And the moon continues to shine silently.

**A/N **I'm not sure I'm pleased with this entry. I certainly didn't plan for it to turn out into a horror-romance-spiritual AU though I did want a ghost element to it. I'm uneasy about my first 'mature' scene. Constructive feedback would be most welcomed. Please do not flame or I shall not update.

The lyrics in this chapter were taken from the Phantom of the Opera written by Andrew Lloyd Webber.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N **Here is the K-rated submission for H (I'm planning after the end of Z – alphabetical order is at times such a pain to maintain – to add new 'bonus' chapters of different letters, _not in alphabetical order_ as you might have guessed. :)

I am really surprised and pleased to find that my vampire entry for ByaHime was so popular with many of you. I didn't expect that. I suppose all of us are part Gothic lovers in our heart of hearts. XD

Consider this chapter to be loosely connected with Eternity. Without further ado, I present to you…

**Hunt**

_He is coming._

Orihime's breathing was ragged as she darted through the undergrowth, dodging roots and ducking under tree branches, leaving behind nothing but a faint afterglow. A typical trait of the Fae was being light-footed and quick. _As well as being irresistibly beautiful… _Orihime blushed at her remembrance of a particularly open and affectionate male vampire's comment in the Court of Pure Souls. _Kyouraku Shunsui, wasn't it? _

Not all the vampires at the Court had been hostile or purely hungry for her fairy blood. Being the last of her kind, she had been an attraction on many levelsto all the vampires gathered there. Kyouraku-san had cared, as a well-meaning stranger, that she be happy in her situation…

_Speaking of situation…_

Orihime felt a blinding flash of pain in the tender dip of neck, causing her to stumble as a result. _He is angry. Kuchiki Byakuya is angry at her escape._

The mating mark he had placed on her skin, a crane encircling a cherry blossom, when she prevented Kurosaki-kun's near execution _has it already been three months since their disastrous attempt to rescue Kuchiki Rukia? _is burning. She had sliced her forearm to draw attention away from Kurosaki-kun, and it had worked _almost too well. _In exchange for her friends' return to the Human World, she had remained behind. But not anymore, she has to do this.

_And she is afraid. Afraid but determined. _It is so near she could almost taste it. _Freedom._

Oh how she longed for it! Broad daylight and the smell of fresh air, green grass and to chase Tatsuki-chan in a field of red dragonflies. Yes, she craved it _enough to risk death from her Vampire master._

She is his Paramour. _The first one he'd ever had after the death of his first mate and wife, Hisana, who had died five thousand years ago. _

Orihime doesn't know what to feel towards the lord of one of the most prestigious vampire clans of the Seireitei. He had not been cruel, far from it. His demeanour was generally indifferent with occasional startling bursts of emotion, which vacillated from tenderness to frustration to the frightening moments of jealousy-violence. _How could Byakuya-san believe she was attracted to Ulquiorra Schiffer when it was the bat hybrid who sought her out – to challenge her beliefs and to infuriate her?_ Compared to Kurosutchi Mayuri, Kuchiki Byakuya could even qualify as benevolent.

Orihime felt a frisson as she sped up her sprint through the foliage at the unpleasant memory which assailed her. It was the vampires like Kurosutchi Mayuri which convinced her that the Court of Pure Souls, for all the irony of its name, was far from pure _and far from safe_. The mad scientist had made no attempt to conceal his eagerness to experiment with her Fae blood should he ever find a chance to exploit. _And he did get the chance to, though he denies his involvement in her painful ordeal._

Fae are susceptible to few things, but one of the most potent weapons against their kind is iron. And somehow iron had been introduced into one of Orihime's meals, which had produced an instantaneous reaction of retching and stinging rashes. That had been the one time Kuchiki Byakuya had shown a ferocious protective side. He went on a killing spree on her injured account. Kurosutchi Nemu had been torn apart, though she later reconstituted herself as she was programmed to, as were several not-so-lucky vampires of Kurosutchi's 12th division faction. It had been the exhausted pleading on her behalf _please, no more, Byakuya-san _which had stilled his murderous rage before she collapsed.

And during her convalescence, he had been by her side constantly with an indiscernible emotion on his face. Orihime might have called it 'concern' had she been in a less lucid state of mind. The oddity from her poisoning was that Kurosutchi had denied vehemently his involvement. _But if it wasn't him, who could it have been?_

Orihime had her suspicions. For despite her fear of the unscrupulous scientist, she would much rather deal with this unethical vampire in comparison with Sousuke Aizen and Ichimaru Gin.

There was something unnatural and suspicious beneath that illusive veneer of polite helpfulness _and that creepy ubiquitous smile _which inspired a wariness which she couldn't shake off in their presence. The Seireitei was the final stronghold of the remaining vampires, but behind that impenetrable illusion of strength and timeless power, Orihime can sense the cracks showing. _Something evil was eating this society from the inside out. The webs of a conspiracy were there though everyone denies it and turns a blind eye. _So Orihime had fled this night of the full moon. She will not become a cog in the machinations of a monster. Her only regret was not being able to thank Byakuya-san for his care and protection when he took her under his wing during her time in the Seireitei.

A cold droplet tapped the fairy's nose.

_Rain! Even the Cosmos were on her side!_

The rain will wash away her scent and hinder any tracking patrols which may come after her. _But will it be enough to stop her demon lover?_

Orihime shivered again, refusing to dwell on the possible answer and by extension the repercussions, which all included being drained dry for her blood. A smell of salt came on the breeze. She smiled. She is nearing the beach. _When she hits the waves, she will be able to open a portal back to Karakura! _Racing onto the sand, Orihime hurried forward joyfully.

A foot away from the rolling foam, she was tugged to an abrupt halt. _What?! _Her entire body had frozen, and not on her own accord. The fairy struggled, crying. _She is so close! Why?!_

The answer manifested itself in the periphery of her eye. Ebony hair caught in white _kenseikans _above simmering cobalt eyes burned into her. Orihime trembled from fear as the unearthly beautiful man approached.

"Please…let me go." Byakuya continued to gaze at the frozen, trembling fairy. His eyes revealed none of the mass of roiling emotions, in turmoil, beneath his stoicism. _She had nearly successfully escaped. Had it not been for the effects of the mating mark, through which he could partially control her, he would have lost her. _And that statement resonated within the vampire as he kept walking forward. _He could have lost her._

Byakuya was not unaware that Orihime thought he marked her as a result of the pull of her blood, not out of love. An image of a distraught Orihime uncharacteristically being helplessly angry came to mind. _"Blood, always blood!" she had cried out to Hitsugaya Toushirou and Matsumoto Rangiku as she launched a comet fireball into the library wall. A scorch mark still remains to this day. _He himself was aware that she loved the human shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo. A growl escaped his lips, stilling Orihime's struggling, as his thoughts turn once more to the rash substitute, his mood blackening.

No. As beguiling as Orihime's blood and beauty had been, his attraction to her had not been those factors. Whereas his fellow captains had fixated on the beautiful fairy because she had a cure or salve to give them, he had been ensnared … by her loneliness. In her blood, he had smelled a Love so powerful that it reminded him of the love he exhibited and gave to Hisana five thousand years ago, a Love which broke conventions and paid not a wit to criticisms. He also knew that the Substitute had no intention _he did not even know! _of reciprocating the fairy's devotion and affections. But it was the _loneliness _of her Soul crying out for a companion, for a Soulmate, for a Love, which mirrored his own – a lonely soul who had been bereft and drifting since Hisana's death. _And he had answered her call. Foolishly. Automatically. Impulsively, like a newborn Youngling who had no control or inhibitions._

The touching of two Souls, in vampire customs, was the strongest bond ever to exist in Time and History. _And it was rare. _Seldom does one being truly find their Other Half. Often, it was the call of the blood, which cemented mating. _For all humans' condemnation of the vampire race, they too heeded the importance of blood as seen in the intermarriage of Royalty and the nobility, and their emphasis on pure bloodlines. _And Byakuya knew, deep within the darkest corners of his heart where he stows his denials, regrets and secrets, he knew that Hisana had never shared that bond with him. _She had loved him eventually. How could she not when he expressed such care and devotion of First Love, Instant Love, holding regard only for her, defying the Kuchiki Council of Elders, and even adopted Rukia? Ttwo peasant women from the Rukongai entering one of the most esteemed noble families of the Seireitei was unheard of. _But the Love had been deeper on his side…as it was the same with Inoue Orihime.

That is why he cannot release her. He cannot let her go. To do so would kill his soul and plunge him into mental and physical agony. _Losing the other half of your Soul…_

Byakuya had not expected to love Orihime that day she invaded the Seireitei to rescue Rukia. His Love was most likely not the one she had been searching for. _But their Love, their Bond, was the one they both deserve and had been waiting for. _

He will help her understand in time, but for now… as he wraps his arms around her sobbing frame, softening his eyes as he looked at her confused ones, which shone no hate, only distress and bewilderment, he can only reply:

"Never."

**A/N **This chapter took much longer than I expected, but what do you think? Review, review, and review! Eagerly anticipating your feedback. :3


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N **Oh yes, haven't we all wondered what would happen if one of our two favourite characters happened to be a little … tipsy?

**Inebriated**

That balmy July evening would forever hold significance for a selected few. It would also remain a taboo subject should any of those members with a vested interest value their lives and wish to live for a few centuries longer.

Kyouraku Shunsui and Ukitake Jyuushiro would forever limit their responsibility _in the Incident _at having shown Orihime-chan earlier that morning a photo of a young Kuchiki Byakuya, standing arrogantly with crossed arms in all his youthful cockiness, staring at the camera. Kyouraku pushes that _small issue of getting Orihime-chan drunk _onto Matsumoto Rangiku.

Said Tenth Division vice-captain would flap her hands about in a flustered state, aware of her miniature captain's increasingly chilly glower and the drop in the room's thermostat, and argue that despite the five or so sake cups which she gave her adorable younger bosom sister – ice would start frosting on the window by this point – it was Kurosutchi's and the Twelfth Division's fault for spiking _that last_ sake bottle, which had _absolutely nothing to do_ with Rangiku.

Should you approach the Research Bureau _bravo for not fearing for your safety at being chloroformed and dissected 'for investigation'! _said mad scientist would wave a hand to dismiss you before murmuring 'they were interesting results though completely useless'.

The Incident at the Blue Leaves Tavern that July evening were as follows, recounted faithfully by an anonymous scribe and witness to the event…

To mark the end of the term and their graduation from secondary high to university, the Golden Quartet consisting of Inoue Orihime, Kurosaki Ichigo, Yasutora Sado and Ishida Uryuu were invited, courtesy of Matsumoto Rangiku and the Shinigami Women's Association, to celebrate this joyous event with plenty of sake at the Blue Leaves Tavern. _Not even Ishida Uryuu and Kurosaki Ichigo dared to refuse upon seeing Unohana-taichou's smiling face and gentle invitation to "participate in an occasion which calls for some festivities"._

Having discarded their graduation gowns and caps for the evening, Karakura Town's teenage protectors were ushered into semi-formal attire and pushed through the Dangai to the destination tavern. Ichigo breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that Renji, Hisagi, and the members of the Shinigami Men's Association were there onsite.

And things went well enough minus the misshap of a game of darts which Soi Fon sent _by accident _towards Urahara Kisuke, who had been standing _a little too close _to her beloved mentor, Yoruichi-sama. Oh, and Madarame Ikkaku had knocked Ichigo square in the nose with his zanpakutou, and let's not forget Kenpachi's drunken declaration to fight and beat Ichigo before he was subdued by Unohana. All in all, it was a very merry evening before things turned slightly rowdy.

It should be known that Inoue Orihime had absolutely no drinking experience, and was, quite logically, a lightweight. After having consumed several small cups of sweet sake, it was to Iba's, Hisagi Shuuhei's and Kira Izuru's consternation _and their personal financial interest – in the forms of their rapidly emptying wallets from playing poker – _that Inoue-san needed to stop drinking. Whereas alcohol made the general populace slow in their reactions and muddled in their minds, Orihime was the exact opposite. Aside from the light flush on her pretty cheekbones, she was completely sober, her mind razor sharp and was dealing great card hands at poker, and getting quite a bit of money as a result. 

It was the entrance of Kuchiki Byakuya which provided the impoverished men the excuse of getting Orihime to stop playing poker when they shoved her into the Sixth Division captain's hands.

"Good evening, Byakuya-san" she said in a slightly dreamy quality. Said noble arched a brow but returned her greeting politely while glaring at the men behind her for their rough treatment towards the young woman. Shinigami have noted that the Kuchiki leader had a surprising tolerance towards particular individuals, one being Kusajishi Yachiru and surprisingly, the list included Inoue Orihime. This was validated when he complied with the human girl's invitation to sit beside her. Gazing in gentle concentration at the aristocrat, Orihime considered something briefly before parting her lips. The ensuing conversation drew everyone's attention in the room to them.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're very handsome, Byakuya-san?"

Dead silence.

"Not…directly." was the slightly embarrassed reply.

Orihime frowned, before reaching to fiddle with the ends of the noble's trademark cornflower blue wind silk scarf on the tatami mats. "Oh. That's…a shame. I find Byakuya-san very handsome."

Continued silence, thick enough to slice, until…

"Even more than Kurosaki Ichigo?" Everyone gaped in astonishment at the noble's question. Those who knew him well enough would identify his current emotion as soft amusement, going by the lack of steel in his eyes. There was a drunk 'huh' from said Substitute Shinigami, who was uncomprehending of the conversation and the reactions of the people around him. He was punched quiet by Rukia who was eagerly anticipating her friend's response.

"Mmhmm…about equal, maybe?, I think. Is that…strange?" was the answer before the lilting voice continued. "But when Byakuya-san was little, your smile was the same as Kurosaki-kun's, in the photo."

Tension rose, as two captains tried to discreetly shuffle towards an inconspicuous hiding place or preferably the exit.

"What. photo." It was amazing how two words which were meant to be a question can come out as a demand.

"Oh, it was the photo of Byakuya-san in a white and green uniform." Yoruichi muffled a snort of laughter as she remembered Orihime's description. Byakuya glared at her.

"And _who _was it that showed you this photo, Orihime?"

Ukitake and Kyouraku felt cold sweat bead upon the back of their necks.

"Ukitake-san and Kyouraku-san." If looks could kill, these two captains would have been sliced apart by Byakuya's narrowed eyes. Sheepish smiles and weak laughs occurred before –

"But Byakuya-san's question is so difficult. It's very hard to say whether you or Kurosaki-kun has better looks. I mean, Byakuya-san has the looks of a man, and well, Kurosaki-kun is…Kurosaki-kun."

A gathering of this size of shinigami has never been so quiet or quite so eager to hang onto the words of an unsuspecting human.

Orihime giggled as she looked up and smiled at Byakuya with no reserve or feelings of shyness or impropriety. "I suppose, one can search all their life for the perfect cherry blossom…and it would not be a wasted life…"

It was like watching a train crash. All the shinigamis present were looking on with morbid fascination. _Was Inoue Orihime, the Inoue Orihime who so loved Kurosaki Ichigo, __flirting__ with Kuchiki Byakuya?! _The thought crossed their minds that maybe someone should interfere before the girl actually shot herself in the foot with her comments. Except the action was still ongoing…

Orihime had during this moment leaned across the small gap dividing her and the Kuchiki noble. Tilting her head upwards to look at him with no judgment, only gentleness, she asked, "Maybe I can find my answer. … I am going to kiss you, Byakuya-san."

Kyouraku and Ukitake wondered if they heard wrong and whether their senses were declining as a result of old age.

Unohana Retsu dropped her sake cup.

Abarai Renji was currently looking like a gobsmacked puppy with sake exiting his mouth instead of going the other way.

Matsumoto Rangiku was clutching her Captain in excitement. Hitsugaya Toushirou was too shocked to struggle or communicate his irritation at being squeezed in such an un-captainly manner.

Nemu was sitting beside a rigid Quincy with a pencil poised over a notepad.

Coughing and sounds of choking could be heard from a certain strawberry boy, who was too busy to unblock his airway and too drunk to cross the room and shake some sense into his nakama, preferably separate her from that noble.

And for once, Yachiru and her Ken-chan were absolutely still, waiting for the finale.

As for Kuchiki Byakuya, his eyes widened in shock while nothing came from his parted lips. He was still not moving, not even raising his hands to push away Orihime as she closed her eyes and neared his lips.

Still not moving…

Still not moving…

No one was moving…

Two pairs of lips were a breath away from each other when… a quiet snoring sound was heard.

Byakuya stiffly tilted his head down towards his lap where Inoue Orihime had fallen… fast asleep.

It was still dead silence as everyone took in what had happened _and more importantly, what had nearly happened. _

"She will not be told of what occurred tonight."

Everyone was still in a stupor and agreed without thinking. _Some wished they had not done so on hindsight. _Then to engrave the memory of this extraordinary event, hereafter named 'The Incident', into their minds for years to come, Kuchiki Byakuya had gently gathered Inoue Orihime into his arms before stepping out of the Blue Leaves Tavern, leaving behind an unsettled audience in various stages of shock.

**A/N **HAHAHAHA! Byakuya's question about being more handsome than Ichigo does make one wonder whether he drank some sake beforehand. Anyways, I am waiting forlornly at my laptop for a review. So please review! *inserts puppy eyes*

In case you're having trouble imagining a drunk Orihime, just think of a gentle, dreamy Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter.

The quote "One can search for his entire life for the perfect cherry blossom, and it would not be wasted life." is from The Last Samurai, by Lord Katsumoto. (My usage of it was probably not the most orthodox method to get the message across, but hey, cherry blossoms are synonymous with Kuchiki Byakuya.) XD


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N **This chapter will be an Inuyasha/Bleach crossover. It's also set in the future when Orihime is already a Shinigami in Soul Society.

Has anyone noticed that Kuchiki Byakuya and Sesshomaru (from Inuyasha) are remarkably similar? Not only in terms of voice tones, but as characters, they're both aristocrats (Sesshomaru is a _Taiyoukai _or Demon Lord of the West) and rather arrogant. Both happen to refer to people they dislike as _kisama_; and of course, both of them protect humans (Sesshomaru has his little ward, Rin, and Byakuya has … if you're going to say Rukia, well, you have just lost some virtual brownie points -_-" )

**Joke**

_It was meant to be a joke. A harmless joke._

_Jokes were not supposed to come back and bite you in the backside when you least expect it. Wait, he's mixing things up, isn't he? It's karma that does thing like this, isn't it?_

Abarai Renji rubbed his eyes for the fifth time. For the life of him, he couldn't remember doing something in his present or past life to merit this _impossibility _to occur.

It had been a quiet joke between him, Hisagi Shuuhei and Kira Izuru _wouldn't it be funny if Inoue's zanpakutou actually hated or disliked Ichigo? _None of them had expected …well, _this_. Their backwater joke was only harmless fun and mindless chatter, not meant to be brought into actual existence.

Renji gazed in tired bewilderment at the current figure standing guard vigilantly beside a sleeping Orihime. The tall, pale man had elfin shaped ears and strange markings _though Renji had no room to talk about strange markings considering his tattoos. _A crescent moon adorned the middle of the stranger's forehead while his face and forearms carried two magenta stripes. The deadly claws on the ends of his fingers belied the pose of ease and relaxation and the strange _(funny?)_ fur pelt on his shoulder. This man _could he even be called a man? There was something distinctly animal-like about him_, who had not bothered to give out his name, is not someone _something? _to be taken lightly. _Blessed Soul King, people who had underestimated Kuchiki-taichou or mocked his 'flower petal' attacks had been proved painfully wrong – Zaraki taichou included. _

This silver-haired man's very presence had brought out the dormant, human-like zanpakutou forms of every member of the thirteen Court Guards, captain and vice captain. Hovering behind Renji stood Zabimaru – Saru and Hebi. Occupying various spaces across the present hospital room in the Fourth Division were the rest of the zapakutou – Hyourinmaru, Haineko, Tobiume, Katen Kiyokotsu, _ no Kotowari, Sode no Shiraiyuki and Senbonzakura – along with their respective masters. No one was missing. _Actually Ichigo is missing, but he's hurrying back from a routine konsou as they wait. _

It was getting rather crowded considering the newly arrived Eleventh Division members, Ikkaku and Yumichika and their zanpakutous_. _Since Orihime's zanpakutou refused to answer any questions directed towards him after he appeared outside the Fourth Division with an unconscious Orihime, addressing only Unohana taichou, someone suggested they wait until Orihime regains consciousness so she can answer their queries.

Renji briefly considered his captain sitting near the foot of the hospital bed. Kuchiki Byakuya was the only other person in the room _aside from the demonic zanpakutou_ who appeared imperturbably calm as he alternated between focusing his gaze between the blank wall and his resting Third Seat. _Yup, contrary to all predictions of entering the Fourth Division, Orihime had been selected into the Sixth Division and within an incredibly short amount of time, through hard work and sheer determination, she had worked her way up the ranks despite having no zanpakutou, gaining grudging respect from her opponents and admiration from her peers and supporters. _

Today was the day that her katana had manifested. Orihime had been sent _alone, strangely_ to deal with several Hollows in a district of the Rukongai. Kuchiki-taichou had been furious when he found out and had been about to demand permission to find his subordinate when he felt a tremendous flare of her reiatsu in the designated combat area. Five minutes later, he shunpo-ed instead to the Fourth Division where he and Renji then clapped eyes on a strange sight. _Orihime was tucked securely, though unconscious, in the fur pelt of a tall, silver-haired man, who paid not a wit to the frightened shinigami surrounding him with weapons, calling out instead in a resonant imperative voice for the 'Healer Captain Unohana'. _

Golden amber eyes burned into Renji's. And the sixth division fukutaichou felt his heart momentarily freeze. A small lazy smirk graced the stranger's visage before he resumed his gaze on Orihime. A small tick developed at Renji's brow.

_The other thing, and it was a creepy fact for him to discover, was the uncanny similarities between Orihime's zanpakutou and Kuchiki-taichou. _For example, like that feeling from before when Renji and the silver-haired man locked gazes. _It was similar to the first time he met Kuchiki-taichou at the Shinou Academy, that feeling of crushing immense power which made him almost unable to look into his current captain's eyes, made him feel insignificant like an insect. _This zanpakutou also created that same feeling of annoyance within him whenever Kuchiki-taichou was being smug _which was most of the time _about something which he knew better than his vice captain. 

Renji was no fool despite Rukia's name-calling _or at least, he was not a fool in this assumption. _Orihime's zanpakutou was definitely of noble lineage. He and Kuchiki Byakuya both carried themselves with the same air and grace of the nobility. They expected their orders to be carried out _as shown with the silver-haired man's earlier demand for Unohana-taichou's presence and ordering the rest of the zanpakutou when they got too rowdy to "Be quiet"._

And the bit about hating Ichigo? Well, Renji confirmed his inner unease by the following episode.

Ichigo had burst in noisily, calling out, "Inoue, are you okay?!"

"Silence, _kozou, _if she wakes-" A quiet moan interrupted his threat towards the former Substitute Shinigami. Orihime tossed a little, frowning, but continued sleeping.

Renji felt his entire body tense when the silver-haired guardian narrowed his eyes at Ichigo, emitting a low warning growl. The crackling _reiki _surrounding the irritated guardian surged to a new height when an additional yellow blur hurtled itself towards the sleeping young woman.

"INOUE-SAAANNN mphfff!"

Squeak.

Kon lifted his button eyes to confront an impassively-irritated face. "AAAAHHHHH! Who the heck are you?"

Derisive amber eyes looked down on the stuffed lion clutched negligently in one hand. "I was about to ask _you _that question."

"You don't know anything about me, and you try to kill Kon-sama?! You, you, you big-headed wolf!"

A long drawn out squeak was heard from Kon's stuffing. Renji thought the seams might be close to tearing apart underneath the sharp claws.

"I'm a dog demon actually. _Daiyoukai _of the Western Lands."

Kon gulped before he started hollering for all his miniscule toy body was worth. _This situation was bad. This guy was dangerous. And not just dangerous like Ichigo-on-a-bad-day dangerous. This was insane-mad-dangerous like when Kuchiki Byakuya actually caught him spying up Onee-san's skirt-_

"Cease your irritating racket _this instant!_" Kon choked into silence mid-yell as he gazed fearfully at the dog demon lord, whose other free hand was beginning to glow green. "Furthermore, you will desist from this moment forward your inappropriate behaviour and actions towards my charge. Am I understood?"

Kon nodded shakily. The demon lord narrowed his eyes. "Say it aloud." It was amazing how much of an imperative the _inuyoukai _could pack into his words while barely raising his voice.

"I swear I won't ever reach again for Inoue-san's 'Valley of the Go-'"

Cold sweat ran down the stuffed lion's face as he clamped his mouth shut. But it was too late. The damage was done. The inuyoukai's eyes started to bleed red as his claws tightened even more on the lion's head. He could smell the lecherous insinuation of this ragged piece of fluff towards Orihime _his current charge who reminded him so much of Rin_, _though Rin, through his intervention, never had to fight and enter combat. _The savage pleasure arose within him_ the natural killer instincts he possessed _as his right hand flared green with corrosive acid at his fingertips. In his peripheral vision, the_ Daiyoukai _can see the other spirit figures recoiling from the poisonous scent, which activated their defensive instincts. Zabimaru crouched low and hissed. Sode no Shiraiyuki covered her delicate nose with her _furisoda _sleeve. Ice formed around Hyourinmaru while Haineko growled, ash forming around her feet. Senbonzakura's hand strayed towards his sword.

"Oi! Let Kon go!"

Cold amber met mahogany brown irises. Renji felt his unease spike. There was a tense charge between Orihime's demonic guardian and Ichigo. Rukia fidgeted beside him, frowning worriedly as the two males sized each other up.

"Shouldn't you have outgrown the need for toys at your age, _kozou_?" Ichigo bristled in fury at the jibe, but was interrupted from arguing back. "Though more interestingly, how is a child's plaything" the dog demon gave Kon a nasty squeeze "…alive?"

"It's my _gigai_, the faux human body that I use sometimes when I do my job in the Human World," Ichigo gritted out through clenched teeth.

"Hn." The silver demon lord smiled.

_ screamed, hiding behind Ukitake's white haori. The other zanpakutou stiffened. Even Renji shuddered, placing the spirit's smile near the top of his never-want-to-see-again list. It raised the hair on the back of his neck, and was no less disturbing than hearing Kuchiki-taichou crack a joke. The red-head frowned. _Again, that strange resemblance between Orihime's zanpakutou and Kuchiki-taichou!_

"All the more reason then to…kill him then," the silver dog demon smiled as he cracked the claws of his right hand. "Be glad that you'll meet your end at my poison claws."

Kon started wailing once more, screaming along the lines of _Ichigoyouidiot, don'tyoudareletmedielikethis!_

The whole thing is actually comedic enough, but Renji could not thinking clearly. The demon's _youki _and _reiki _was oppressing in the tiny hospital room, combined with the clashing spiritual pressure of the other sword spirits.

But he thought he heard Saru speak with Hebi, "Looks like we've got another arrogant noble on our hands. Kinda makes you think of _another arrogant bastard, _doesn't it?" The jab was clearly directed at Senbonzakura, and Renji saw for just a moment how the dog demon and the samurai met each other's calculating gaze before -.

"Nnn. …maru…Please don't, Sesshomaru…"

The glowing claws stopped a hair's breadth away from Kon's face. The demon lord impassively gazed at a troubled Orihime, who could clearly sense him, but was not actually waking up yet.

"Hn." Dropping the stuffed lion, 'Sesshomaru' returned his focus back to Ichigo.

Kon thought he was actually spared from further torture until his body was met with a hard boot. All the zanpakutous watched as Sesshomaru executed a perfect drop kick _which would make David Beckham weep in envy _with enough force to careen the lion toy to break through the roof of the Fourth Division's barracks and arc into the air like a brown rainbow.

"Look at him go," whistled Hebi as he tilted his head back.

"Judging from the sounds, he's made it to Eleventh Division," Senbonzakura noted. Sesshomaru slightly cocked his head, his ears definitely listening. When he caught the notes of lots of punches and thuds, he closed his eyes and smirked. "Good."

"Oi, we're not done here, you bastard!"

Renji almost wanted to face-palm. _Leave it to Ichigo to rachet up the tension again. _The sigh beside him confirmed Rukia's agreement.

"Kon was wrong in what he did to Inoue. I'm not arguing about that. But I don't believe that you're Orihime's _zanpakutou_. And she certainly doesn't need you for protection, she has me!"

The demon lord emphasized his disdain for the orange-haired shinigami in his every words.

"What you believe or fail to grasp is none of my concern."

"Keh, 'Sesshomaru' right? 'Killing Perfection'? You think highly of yourself huh? So answer this! Why are you the only zanpakutou here that's a different gender to your master? You're as different from Inoue as the sun is to the moon, and you're probably just a demon who's planning to overtake Inoue's body to use for your own purposes-"

"My relationship with _my charge _is none of your concern. Considering though, how much you belittle her, it's a shame that she wastes her affections on you."

His derisive tone was sharper than before.

"What?" Ichigo's cluelessness never failed to amaze Renji. Sometimes, the other shinigamis would joke that Ichigo's physical shinigami strength meant he was born with a rather low dose of EQ. _He has to be blind not to know of Inoue's love for him._

_Ah yes, maybe Renji shouldn't partake in those blasted jokes…_

"Pathetic." Sesshomaru intoned, turning away from a fuming Ichigo.

"Oi, I'm not done, you bas-"

A clawed hand choked the strawberry's throat, dangling the young man in mid-air. This time, Ichigo saw the blood-red fury in the dog demon's eyes and felt a tremor of fear and vulnerability _like the first time he faced Byakuya_.

There was chaos in the background, but everything quietened down at the Western lord's growl.

"Listen well, _boy_, I have no qualms about slitting your throat or running you through with Tenseiga. It would be pathetically easy. Know this. The only thing that prevents me from killing you is my charge's feelings for you, which as I've said before, is completely wasted on an ignorant _fool_."

Sesshomaru dropped Ichigo like a rag doll. The orange-head gasped for breath while rubbing his neck.

"Should you endanger her or harm her, and I do not mean just physically, I will personally see to your decapitation…by my hands," the _daiyoukai _threatened as the scent of corrosive acid filled the air once more.

"Now, now, I'm quite sure Ichigo-kun won't do such a thing…" Ukitake tried to placate and mediate the situation.

The entire group of shinigami and sword spirits filed out afterwards when Unohana Retsu arrived to say that visiting hours were over for the day.

Renji was among the last to leave with Kuchiki Byakuya. Ichigo had furiously stormed away already _humiliated and bitter_.

"My words do not extend solely to the boy."

Renji turned in confusion as his captain stopped at the doorway. Senbonzakura stood impassively at the doorframe, arms crossed, face inscrutable behind his mask. Hebi and Saru looked on in confusion.

Kuchiki Byakuya slowly turned to fully face Sesshomaru. The two stared at each other for quite some time, silently, unflinchingly _willing the other to blink or give way first._

Byakuya was the first to break the silence.

"You talk too much." The Kuchiki leader looked as though he would say something more, but perhaps aware of a scrutinizing audience, Byakuya paused before turning to leave. He allowed this much, "I would not allow any harm to befall Orihime."

Byakuya left, trailed by a puzzled Renji.

Sesshomaru gazed after the noble, long after he left. Then he turned towards his resting charge, placing a clawed hand on her cheek and allowing an uncharacteristic gentleness to manifest in his gestures. He briefly held a strand of her unusual sunlight hair before turning away, resuming his seat beside her, while gazing at the full moon outside.

Nobody notices, but Sesshomaru does. He sees _through Orihime's mind _the emotion-laden glances and the occasional long stares that Kuchiki Byakuya sends towards Orihime _though the little one does not recognize them as more than friendship from a captain-mentor, though she is grateful for his advice and the secret reminder of her brother Sora through the Kuchiki clan's leader._

Sesshomaru hears what the captain did not say.

"I would not allow any harm to befall Orihime. _Not even from myself._"

Sesshomaru mentally snorts. _This promise would have to do… for now._

The white moon swells in the night sky, sending in gentle moonbeams to light caressingly on Orihime, as Sesshomaru silently vanishes.

A lingering moonbeam falls upon a white-pommel katana in a light blue sheath in Orihime's sleeping grip. The crossguard at the hilt of the sword was engraved with a crescent moon surrounded by cloud motifs and six-petal hisbiscus flowers.

**A/N **_Inuyasha_ was one of my childhood animes, and with its conclusion _The Final Act,_ I wanted to blend my tribute to it with my Orihime fictions :)

After all, Tenseiga (Sesshomaru's sword) is quite fitting for Orihime since it's more of a healing sword. It can bring back to life 1000 spirits in one strike, though it can only cheat death once.

_The Final Act _saw Tenseiga being given offensive abilities as well, mainly to send the Wielder's enemies to Hell as well as purify souls in the Underworld.

I know that Rin is quite different from Orihime, but they both share the same sweetness and happiness at the simple things in life, like picking flowers. I think Sesshomaru could grow to truly care for Orihime if they ever did interact.

Sesshomaru and Byakuya share some surprising symbolisms and similarities as well. Byakuya's name literally means 'white night' or 'white moon' – sorry, I'm not sure – and Sesshomaru is affiliated to the moon through his mother. Byakuya also enjoys looking at the moon, so I thought it quite fitting that the two of them should watch out for Orihime.

I know that this chapter did not have much interaction between our favourite gal and noble, but Byakuya did admit to promise to protect Orihime. (Ichigo, you've got competition. *insert mad cackle and gleeful rubbing of hands)

My support for Kagome x Sesshomaru should probably be a hint to you guys that a) I'm rather a crack shipper, and b) I take a very dim view of male characters who are emotionally dense and do not recognize faithful true love – often over a period of months and years – when handed on a platter to them.

Anyways, personal rant aside, please review, review (insert a flying Kon in mid-air) REVIEW!

Stay tuned to the next letter. 


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N **It's October, and soon will be Halloween. :) Let's get in the mood.

**Knot**

It was Halloween.

And Orihime, dressed in magnificent royal lilac as Scheherazade, looked the part of the Arabian One-Thousand-and-One-Nights storyteller queen as she came to the Sixth Division to collect Rukia for their trick-or-treat outing in the World of the Living.

Everything would have proceeded smoothly as the two girls and Abarai Renji were preparing to enter the _Dangai _if only Orihime's _dupatta _and Kuchiki Byakuya's blue wind silk scarf did not get entangled together.

Orihime blushed a new shade of rose, which was unprecedented. Her wrist bangles jingled as she sought to untie the knot between her and the stoic captain. _It did not help that there were slight snickers emanating from Zaraki Kenpachi and the Eleventh Division._

Her embarrassment only halted when two larger, paler hands patiently stilled hers before efficiently untangling their respective scarves.

Orihime bobbed a half bow, babbling a flustered apology _her eyes darting everywhere except at Byakuya_ before nearly grabbing Rukia to flee the scene.

Byakuya could understand her embarrassment although he thought her blush might have been nearly an over-reaction.

"Ah, they mentioned like this in History class the other day…"

Byakuya turned to look at his fukutaichou, quirking a brow, asking a silent question.

"Apparently, in Indian custom, if a woman's scarf becomes entangled with a man's, there is a red thread between them. One which eventually culminates in marriage…" Renji explained.

At the incredulous look he was being given, the red-haired vice captain made a quick exit, muttering something about watching over Rukia and returning her safely later in the evening, as he too dashed into the _Dangai._

If anyone looked closely, they might notice that the Kuchiki leader appeared to have a faint flush along his cheekbones.

Unohana Retsu chuckled quietly as she stopped beside the rigid captain. "If you will allow me to diagnose your condition, Kuchiki taichou, I believe that you might have developed a _healthy attachment_."

The insinuation was clearly not lost on the head of the Kuchiki clan as he politely gritted out a "Unohana taichou" before gracefully walking away as diginified as possible.

It wasn't until he entered the privacy of his own chambers that he allowed a small smile to form. _Perhaps he would consider joining Rukia next year in Halloween._

**A/N **According to Wikipedia, a _dupatta _is scarf, can be worn with a female suit and/or with a skirt-_choli_ ensemble. When a woman's and a man's scarf are tangled together, it's said that they have a connection.

Tee-hee. Let's see if I can write a chapter where Byakuya and Orihime proceed to tie the knot of knots (ie. marriage).

Anyways…leave behind a message please. Reviews are most looked forward to!


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N **This one is dedicated to nypsy, who was so eager that there be a ByaHime kiss :P And therefore, voila!

A toast to Byakuya and Orihime's first kiss.

A toast to you all, my dear faithful readers, who have read and reviewed my stories from the start of _Stitch by Stitch _(and hopefully to its end too!)

**Kiss**

_A kiss is a milestone._

That has always been Orihime's belief.

A belief which she clung to even as the movies in the cinemas and many of the girls in her classes moved on much more quickly to more …intimate, physical encounters with their boyfriends and lovers.

The increasingly eroded, increasingly obsolete tradition and opinion that a girl's first kiss is special never left Orihime. Perhaps it was easier for her _even when Chizuru asked, even Tatsuki-chan (bless her) asked her hesitatingly whether she felt she was missing out. _

Of course she did. It was always a silent painful ache and yearning within her to know those forbidden pleasures, which has become so common and trivialized around her. _She wondered how it felt to be so loved. _But Orihime is stubborn in her own way _and stuck to her mecha Gundam green little men guns. _She would have her Kiss before embarking on any other type of explorations.

_Was it so much to ask_, she wondered in her university years, _for a Kiss_?

The beautiful auburn doctor is not referring to goodnight kisses _though Sora-nii-chan made them feel so nice on her forehead at the end of the day_, goodbye kisses _like the one on the cheek which she gave Sado-kun and a blushing Ishida-kun as Orihime boarded a plane for a nine-month Sabbatical outside of Japan, _or the I-forgive-you-but-you-don't-even-know kiss to a reincarnated child Ulquiorra in Spain, and _Kami-sama forbid_! accidental kisses of the I-fell-on-you-because-of-a-steep-staircase sort or we-are-standing-under-a-mistletoe-so-let's-follow-tradition sort of kiss.

Orihime wanted her first Kiss to be _Special_.

As sixteen years melded to eighteen to twenty, twenty-one, twenty-three, and twenty-five, she wondered if she has _yet again _asked for too much.

The child within the woman had always hoped _had imagined with flushed cheeks under heated covers in the veil of the Night _that that Kiss would be shared with Kurosaki Ichigo, whom she loved and made a serious Vow to under a crescent moon. But her dear nakama's emotional obtuseness, a cuttingly painful obliviousness, soon overcame her Devotion.

She had laid that First Love to rest, buried it one day _at long last _when she went swimming among the coral reefs in Spain's beaches.

She returned back to Japan, back to Karakura Town, back to her patients who missed her absence.

But falling out of love with Ichigo did not remedy her problem of a Kiss.

_Gentle calloused hands from two centuries of wielding a sword carefully fell on her hips, on the back of neck. Hands, which could so easily cut down a Hollow, now held her so reverently as though a thoughtless touch could break her._

_Cobalt, not amber, eyes burned at her gaze. _

_A bewitching scent of sandalwood and cherry blossoms filled her senses._

It was in a cold pond, in the garden of a magnificent estate with fragrant sakura trees, under a light drizzle that shared the sky with a bright, cheerful sun during the afternoon that twenty-five year old Orihime received her Kiss.

An honest-to-God-I-intended-to-kiss-you-and-I-Love-You kiss placed on her lips, a long, unbreaking-for-three-minutes Kiss which started chaste before melting to a heart-stopping passionate one of soft moans and gratified sighs and groans.

And the one to give Orihime her Wish…

Stardust opened her eyes to Eternity.

"_Byakuya-san."_

**A/N **Soooooooo, what do _you_ think? It was actually a difficult scene to write, but I'm glad it's finally out for reading.

I've been very busy, and likely to be busier still. So please bear with me.

Out of interest, can someone find somebody to draw me a ByakuyaxOrihime image? I would really like to change my display picture. Please also tell me how commissioning drawings work because I have absolutely no experience with this. If you have the time, please also tell me how I can 'Follow' or 'Favourite' stories on Fanfiction.

Thanks ever so much!


	14. Chapter 14

**Lock **

He thought it ironic that a lord like him would stoop so low to steal.

_To be a thief in love._

The name Kuchiki is revered _feared_ throughout Seireitei with a few _often fatal _exceptions. More harmless examples came to mind, such as the warmongering 11th division barbarian who called himself Kenpachi. Fifty years ago, it was Shiba Kaien who called him "that arrogant brat". Now, fifty years later, an orange-haired Substitute shinigami counterpart with the same uncouth, brash and disrespectful manner would insult _but grudgingly respect _him.

Aside from such minor outliers, there was nothing that his name, his wealth, his prestige could not procure for him.

_Except…_

A petite, small-boned woman with raven hair and messy bangs…

Her sad eyes…

Her regretful (rare) smiles…

Her ungivable love…

Hisana had been so embarassed when he caught her in the act once of hiding small precious trinkets and bonbon sweets in a tucked away box, a residual habit from the Rukongai which forever lingered in her system.

_But she never knew that he did the same. _

When Time becomes too heavy and blurs his memories, Byakuya would go to a specific room in the manor, which was isolated and forbidden for others to enter. He would carefully finger the cherry wood comb which held a few strands of ebony before moving onto a carefully wrapped box containing different garments Hisana used to wear.

_And now…_

To think that he is back to stealing again. _And this time, this person is nigh impossible to capture._

But Byakuya also knew that if he did accomplish such a feat through dishonourable means, it would mean her death. The image of a different pair of healing hands, stardust eyes gazing through the bars of a birdcage drew a shudder from his core.

_She is so different from Hisana._

Yet Byakuya soon learned how subtly, how easily one can fall for _Her _as well.

So here he is now, in a different room _could it even be called a room? _in _Her _favourite place whenever she came to visit the Seireitei and his home, an alcove, near the gardens and stables, above the library.

His collection is still small _but growing._

Inside a lacquer box, wrapped in windflower silk, lay simple mundane objects.

A well worn thimble…

A pumpkin pincushion stuck with a needle containing in its eye a spool of rich purple…

A black hankerchief with red motifs of swastikas _something which she had worked so hard over, but not for him, no, for Kurosaki Ichigo…_

More importantly _for himself _a slightly yellowed origami crane of light blue speckled with pink sakuras _something she had folded and intended to give and had given to him…_

Now, he can add another precious memento. _A long lock of sunshine hair. _

Ironically, in Love, Kuchiki Byakuya had always been a thief. Happiness is fleeting so he sought the only way to make it permanent. _He stole it. _Broke them into pieces and locked them away for his safekeeping and perusal.

But in this present case, he cannot be satisfied. He wanted _all_ of Inoue Orihime, every corner of her too generous _forever giving_ heart, her nubile lithe shadow, smiles and laughter, the cause of which is Byakuya.

But Kuchiki Byakuya will settle for these small items instead _and lock them away within his heart._

_For now. _

**A/N **Cliffhanger for the ending, muahaha! *gets maimed*

I'm trying to update more submissions as often as I can, but, unfortunately, no guarantees.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N **Just on a roll here, tee hee…

**Modern**

Unlike his relatives, and the Elders of the Kuchiki clan, and a few of his fellow Captains, Byakuya never feared the modernity of the Living World.

Though he understood their positions, given how easily the contraptions of the Human World migrated into Soul Society, _telephones evolved into cellphones, television screens replaced by computers_ he wasn't afraid.

But that's not to say that he does not find it bewildering.

"_It's Jalapeno pepper jello, Byakuya-san. Do you want to try some?"_

_Stardust irises literally flashed at him. The colours as bright as a novella barely contained in that human shell, a nubile female body. _

Up to this day, Byakuya still does not understand why his Lieutenant, Rukia and the rest of Inoue Orihime's friends were screaming when he took his first bite of Human World Jelloand looking at him as though he would keel over dead.

His assessing reply, "_It's adequate"_, somehow managed to cause Kurosaki Ichigo to lose his balance and face-plant into the ground. Byakuya found Orihime's Jello perfectly edible. And for some inane reason, Kyouraku Shunsui and Ukitake Jyuushiro would muffle undignified giggles on the transmission television screen when they see him and the former female _ryoka _drink a beverage called 'Pumpkin spiced Latte'.

It should also not suggest that he does not find it odd, and just… Different.

"_Why would you expend effort to do… that?"_

_Orihime gazed up at the Captain from her position on her back in the snow. He should not be finding that position…provocative. Her eyes widened even more that Byakuya irrationally thought he could actually fall and be lost within that strange wishing well full of mysteries. _

"_Byakuya-san, you've never made a Snow Angel before?"_

Modern is forever full of surprises, twirling and skip-dancing down the sidewalk in floral print dresses in bright colours, which would make any other individual look like a mental asylum escapee but _She _could pull it off effortlessly.

Full of the wildest imaginings – Byakuya could remember the drawing Orihime showed him of her 'Future Self' in all its mecha Gundam armour glory with its four robotic arms and apocalyptic rockets firing off in the background – but so academically high achieving – _"Inoue always ranks second in the school exams. No one except Ishida Uryuu beats her," _Rukia told him when she came back from a graduation ceremony.

A clumsiness which morphs into an adorable form of grace, the most uninhibited suggestions matched only by an acute sixth sense of empathy and mind-reading, and …bright smiles balanced by quiet sadness.

Modern is the light but resonant clicking of her Jimmy Choo high heels – _"You actually remember the name of those monstrosities?!" _Kurosaki Ichigo asked incredulously as he rubbed his feet from a timely assault by Rukia with aforementioned shoes – matched by the power, self-esteem and success of a self-made female CEO.

"_I'm planning to name the drinks company, 'Wahaha'. What do you think, Byakuya-san?" _

_He greedily takes in her form, who shifted her weight onto a slender, shapely leg and kept her hand casually on her hip, looking at him with all the trust in the world. He quietly swallows before answering, "It suits you."_

But now, Kuchiki Byakuya has a reason to fear Modern.

Modern entraps him, keeps him enthralled by her. Modern becomes his Lover, a Secret Mistress, and a nocturnal Soulmate in his bed.

_Already two years…_

He cannot get enough of her voice, her smile, her body…and her broken, abused heart.

Modern is Free.

Modern is Independent, self-sufficient.

_What partly bound Hisana to him, her poverty and miserable Inuzuri-Rukongai circumstances, cannot keep Orihime at his side._

_She is materially wealthy in the Human World, though she never flaunts garish displays of being rich. _

Modern can walk away without a backward glance at his lonely form if she so wishes.

_A human male could provide for her in ways that he couldn't. Stability, a husband, with no fears of being persecuted by a ghostly court if their affair was discovered, …a normal human child with no fears of half-breed Shinigami humans._

But she is still here. _Thank Kami._

_But for how long? _And cold trinkles down Byakuya's spine as he remembers how their relationship began.

_The news of Kurosaki Ichigo's engagement to Senna had spread faster than Hellfire through the Seireitei. There was nothing Byakuya could have done to hide or shelter her from the pending 'joyful news' which broke. _

_He had been fond of her even then. "Strangely over affectionate… in your Byakuya-bo way," intoned a black feline as she groomed herself in the sunlight on the patio of the Kuchiki manor outside Byakuya's study. _

_He didn't reply. _

_There was no need for words. He had long accepted his defeat at unconscious hands, but that's not to say, he would personally confirm it._

_He was then surprised when she approached him later in the afternoon with her usual smile, usual mien of happiness. He could sense that her Soul was unhappy but not tearing apart at the seams from tears. There was an unusual determination in the core of her being._

_She joined him in admiring the cherry blossoms surrounding them when she dropped the bomb. _

"_May I come to your bed tonight?"_

_He had been stunned speechless._

_And the question had been posed as casually as one may comment about the weather. _

_She looked at his astonished eyes and gently laughed – no tears, just determination. "You can say no, Byakuya-san."_

_There had been no forthcoming explanation afterwards as to 'why' and 'why him'? Was she so wounded by Kurosaki's obtuse obliviousness that she would gladly give her body to another man, any man? Would she do something reckless if Byakuya said no?_

_He looked at the determination in her eyes. Yes, she would. She wants Freedom. She wants to move on. If he said no, there would still be others, other men who would gladly take what her luscious body offered them._

_But how is this in any way, right?_

_She allows herself to be used while Byakuya himself would be used as well? Be her 'rebound' in human slang?_

_Could he accept that? Was he that desperate for her attention and affection to accept that?_

_Could he say yes? Hisana…_

_Footsteps and calls came from far away. Orihime made to widen the distance between them, not apologetic, not bashful, but not condemning either. _

_She would never force him. She would never reach for him again._

_In the space of time that took Rukia and Renji to turn the corner and see them, Byakuya caught her gaze with a strange emotion in his simmering eyes._

_His answer…_

"_Tonight."_

And that was how their affair began. But something happened that night, which broke the two of them and sealed them together fiercely. _Emotionally. Physically. Spiritually in the soul._

She clung to him as much as he clung onto her.

Something unspoken, unnamed passed between them _like a charged current of electricity. Something lost was found. Something missing was rediscovered. _

Their affair happened because of her own volition, by her free will and choice. But should Orihime tire of him, there is nothing Byakuya can do to bind her to him. _Nothing at all._

He is a noble _but she does not want a title. _His position as leader of the one of the four most prestigious clans in Soul Society is meaningless _for she was born a leader with all the nuances of knowing when to fade into the background and when to take a self-sacrificing choice. _

Byakuya has nothing to offer her, except himself. _His body, his sexual prowess and his understanding of her as a lover, and his affections._

Because she is Modern, she requires nothing from him.

And so Byakuya fears, fears that one day he will find that Modern will not return by nightfall.

And never before, not even with Hisana, has Byakuya so fervently wished that Orihime would find herself with child – _his child, their child, his heir and the physical manifestation of the seed of his love. _

So can any man blame him for holding Orihime to him in a crushing embrace as they climaxed, for holding onto her hand just a little longer than necessary when she dresses in business clothes, so different from his _hakama _and Captain attire, to return secretly through the _Senkaimon _back to the Human World, the Modern World?

Yes, Kuchiki Byakuya loves Modern, who in turn loves and torments him.

_Modern may be the death of him yet._

**A/N **Whoo, this took a while to spin out, but it practically wrote itself. This one, I'm probably the most satisfied with out of the whole lot so far.

*sighs happily

I do not own Bleach unfortunately.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N **Fellow readers, this chapter is the much-asked for, much demanded Family Fic _gasp! _of Orihime and Byakuya's life together :D Now, get reading…

**Normal**

_Perform your duties without fail._

_Under no condition are emotions to interfere with your duty._

_Marry well with someone of your own station._

This was the normal expectation of a Kuchiki, and applied with even stronger severity on the leader of the Clan.

And actually, Byakuya accomplished the first two of the list with near perfection.

_The hardline traditionalists of the Council of Elders would disagree. There was that persistent underlining disapproval of his job as a Captain of the Seireitei, unspoken of but felt in every critical slant of their eyes and some of the faintly mocking twists of their mouths at the family gatherings. Had it not been for the reason of following in his grandfather Ginrei's footsteps and Byakuya's own personal accomplishments and talents in his role as Sixth Division Captain, tongues would have wagged non-stop. _

Then, Byakuya shattered all their expectations when he married Hisana, a peasant woman from the Rukongai with no prestige to her name or any wealth to speak of, no dowry except the clothes on her back. She was certainly not the archetype of a Lady Kuchiki and defied the bill of 'someone of your station'. But Byakuya did not care, slicing through all objections defiantly by marrying the pale, thin-boned woman with ever-sorrowful amethyst eyes. _For all the good it did… _he lost Hisana fifty years ago when her health finally sapped her of her remaining energy.

Byakuya had thought that his life would conform to the definition of 'normal' set down by his ancestors thereafterwards.

He would never, in his wildest imaginings, have dreamt of his present situation now two hundred and sixty-seven years later with a family _that he had secretly craved for_ and a loving, supportive wife.

_Inoue Orihime. _

How one woman can defy normality, unraveling it gradually thread by thread before rejecting its previous existence by dancing on the box, breaking all definable boundaries – and here's the amazing crux to all this – effortlessly, without deliberate intention and redefine his existence and the notion of 'normal' is beyond Byakuya.

Hisana and Rukia did not have that quality of strength – not physical strength, but emotional and mental strength – to persistently go against thousands of years of his ancestral traditions and passively aggressively drag the Elders, kicking and screaming _metaphorically and literally _by the roots of their hair towards Change and Modernity.

Lovingly married for twelve years _twelve blissful, happy, unexpected years _and Byakuya was there every step of the way as his 'Normal' was torn down and built up again on completely different foundations with no boundaries or glass ceilings in sight.

Their passionate affair was concealed for four years before they were discovered. That was when Orihime's war on the Elders began. She was still mortal, human, and a mere twenty-five years old.

Directly contrasting with Hisana and Rukia, who shied away from making contact with Byakuya's relatives as much as possible, Orihime met her challengers head on. _She had walked unflinchingly to Hueco Mundo when she was sixteen; she had walked willingly into the mouth of the lion. _Naturally the lion's maul tried to swallow her whole, and she partially allowed it, a hereto untried and generally ridiculed battle strategy _change from within_. The lion found to its chagrin and surprise that it had trouble digesting her.

Firstly, she proved herself an asset with her healing skills of rejection, causing wariness of her power and of her person. _Byakuya had many a night lost sleep fearing that Orihime may be the target of assassination attempts – there were many, but Orihime had held her own, defeating them successfully. _There were hissed whispers running rampant in the corridors of his manor, accusations of 'witchcraft' and 'a freak of nature' and 'unnatural', to name but a few – but Orihime's first impression was strong and impressive enough that none of Byakuya's extended family members ever uttered those insults directly to Orihime's face.

All assassination attempts abruptly ended when Orihime casually mentioned to his great-uncle Sakujun, who had been plotting to oust Byakuya as clan leader via the lousy reason of his nephew's incompetence in choosing a proper spouse, that her death would only hasten her into Byakuya's arms and protection.

Her second point of attack: she made herself indispensable to the Kuchiki wealth. As a shrewd businesswoman and a CEO of the Wahaha Ltd in the Human World, Orihime increased the wealth of the Kuchiki clan to unprecedented heights when she won over alliances with the Merchants' Guild and more efficient, local small businesses and entrepreneurs.

It was through this careful handling of ridding Byakuya of his economic dependence on Sakujun's vital rice transportation business, which was corrupt and inefficient, that Orihime succeeded in miraculously forcing – "_blackmailing" Sakujun spat_ – the hardline conservatives of the Kuchiki clan into allowing Abarai Renji to marry Rukia and by extension, enter their ranks of nobility. To this day, both Rukia and Renji still express amazement that they could be together with no interference from the Elders.

Logical reasons were fast waning into preventing Orihime's acceptance into the inner folds of the Kuchiki aristocracy. On his part, Byakuya had been relentlessly fighting all objections from the Seireitei to his union with Orihime. While many of the Captains and Vice-captains were fond enough of the human healer, the fact that she was still a human mortal had been sticking point, which worked against the couple.

The turning point for the Seireitei came when Orihime acquired demi-Immortality to match Byakuya's life span from her fight with the Master of the Underworld _another story for another time. _

For the Kuchiki elders, it was Orihime's pregnancy.

Byakuya had been overjoyed when he learnt Orihime was with child. It was Unohana taichou's announcement that his Lover was carrying triplets that nearly shot his blood pressure over the roof.

"_Well, at least we know now, that your zanpakutou is well and functioning," Zaraki Kenpachi jibed, taking advantage of Byakuya's slight shock post-announcement. Said Kuchiki captain casted him a withering glance of disdain … slightly less disarming than before._

_Shihoin Yoruichi had to add in her two-yen. "Who knew that your marriage would become a Seireitei event, Byakuya-bo? Oh, by the way, I am going to be your children's godmother. I'm not accepting 'No' for an answer."_

_Matsumoto Rangiku was less than discreet in her rambling imaginations. "Oh, they're going to be such beautiful, adorable children. Can you imagine? With Orihime's gorgeous looks – not that I'm saying Kuchiki taichou is not hot – and acting like their father, with sticks up their –"_

_Both Hisagi and Hitsugaya wisely silenced the well-endowed vice captain before she signed her death warrant. _

And things did work out for the better.

And they came in the form of Sora, Sen'ichiroudo and Kaguya. Two boys and a girl. _Senbonzakura had been moved to silent tears when Orihime named her second son in his honour. _

Kaguya is the apple of her father's eye. With her crescent moon birthmark on her forehead and curly locks of ebony, she was aptly named after the legendary Princess of the Moon.

Sora, golden-haired and navy blue eyes, is the epitome of Byakuya's hot-tempered youth, who held his father as an ideal. _Byakuya knew that when the time came, he would have to remedy that. His son would need to learn to aim beyond him. But for now, he would bask and live up to his son's expectations, while ingraining within the younger boy, his principles and discipline. _Sora shows signs of manipulating fire, hinting at his allegiance to the Sun with a possibility to be trained under Yamamoto Soutaichou's tutelage.

If the two former children identified a little more with their father, then Sen'ichiroudo _– or Sen – _is definitely a mama's boy. He is the only one of his siblings to inherit his mother's hair and eyes, and is forever to Byakuya's curiosity, a surprising mix between him and Orihime. As Kurosaki Ichigo inaccurately articulated, _"That brat is the one who inherited Orihime's weirdness." _

Sen'ichi had then onwards held a grudge against the former Substitute Shinigami, and made Ichigo regret his words by electrocuting him with lightning bolts whenever he had a legitimate opportunity to.

Byakuya disagreed with the brash orange-head. All three of his children had a penchant for distinctly flavoured foods, leaning towards the spicy as well as sweet and sour. It was a constant source of amusement for him that all three of his children _mildly disliked _Ichigo and would find ways to torment him.

To the queries of the other captains why they disliked 'the Strawberry', here were the responses.

_Kaguya: "Oh Uncle Renji (here Renji would break into cold sweat at his niece's saccharine tone of voice and razor bright smile), _must _we talk about that strange man with the most deplorable tastes in aesthetics?" _

_Sora: "Is there a particular reason we are wasting time in a good kendo sparring match to discuss that impulsive and emotionally-constipated _baka _whose tea spoon amount of reiatsu- and emotional awareness would make a hamster a much more affectionate companion?" _

_(Ukitake Jyuushirou and Kyouraku Shunsui wisely decided to return back to combat training.)_

_Sen'ichiroudo: "Who?" as lightning and slight scent of corrosive acid crackled above the black and white _Go _pieces of his board game. (Matsumoto hid behind her Captain with frightened eyes.)_

_Rukia can only conclude that "Nii-sama's genes" ran strongly in his children. (In the corner, Byakuya smirked.)_

However, he would allow that Sen is definitely the most resembling to Orihime in character _and remarkably a favourite student of his godparents Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke_. It was clear who of his three children would develop the fastest shunpo in Soul Society.

The five-membered family was not five for long.

As Byakuya had adamantly put his foot down into allowing cats as pets, his three children redrew the battle lines.

Nowadays, on the rare occasions that Ichigo ever crossed the threshold of the Kuchiki estate, he would find himself ambushed by three barking Corgi dogs, one three-tailed _kitsune_ fox digging claws into his foot, and a two-headed one-tailed dragon by the name of Ah-Un spewing electricity at him (no prizes for guessing whose Master it belonged to).

"_Good grief, your family is eccentric enough that you even have a talking tree in your family tree," Soi Fon huffed in amazement during a Captains' meeting._

Naturally, it was Orihime who discovered the talking magnolia tree _Bokusenou-sama _located a two-days trek from the mansion. All five of their family have from time to time discreetly impart secrets to the wise tree and wait for advice.

Normal became virtually extinct in their family.

To the delight of the other Captains of the Seireitei, and the Shinigami Women's Association, there was plenty of Kuchiki family drama. The intensity of these situations, which could be documented like a movie script, was such that the Kuchikis could make the Sopranos a run for their money.

_Act I._

_Kaguya enters the Captains' Hall at the end of a meeting, wringing hands with puppy eyes and tears in place to roll down dimpled cheeks. _

"_Oh Papa, please say that you are __not__ planning to marry me off to that __wretched__ Yamashita boy! Not that Papa would follow that obsolete practice of arranged marriage, but I…I… I would shave my head and join the monastery if I am forced to marry that…that…that spoilt brat_!_" _

_Act II._

_Sora hung his head the minimum degree necessary to convey obedience, but not shame._

"_Have you any idea of the disrespect you've shown towards your great aunt Miyako?"_

"_With all due respect otou-sama, Miyako-obaa-sama was insulting Mother and me behind her back. I merely told her that for one so far in years, she is not only childish but cowardly for not saying her comments to my face."_

"… _An apology will have to be made, Sora. I will allow though that you choose your words with care." _

_At the Kuchiki family affair, all eyes were on Sora's apology, executed with perfect Kuchiki indifference._

_When Miyako sniffed imperiously that she accepted his apology and stated that he still had some manners, Sora replied with solemnity resembling Byakuya, _

"_Naturally Madam. I have two of the finest parents as my role models. You too are finally acting mature as befitting your age, though your acceptance of my apology is neither needed nor expected."_

_Cue in stunned silence from the general assembly seated. _

_Act III._

"_Chichiue."_

"_Nani, Sen'ichiroudo?"_

"_I would like to add a pet to our family."_

_Byakuya waited for further details about the animal. When Sen'ichiroudo remained hesitant, he started to gently prod for specifics, his curiousity getting the better of him._

"_You would have to train your pet, and at night, keep it in your room."_

"_Of course I agree with your first condition, chichiue. The complication is in the second point…"_

_Byakuya hazarded a guess._

"_Would the stables do?"_

"_I'm afraid I need a slightly bigger place than the stables. …My 'steed' may also face some … scrutiny from the Animals Safety Regulation Department…"_

_Byakuya, despite a slight pit forming in his stomach from the premonition of additional paperwork, was nevertheless still curious. _Damn his curiousity!

"_What kind of a pet are we talking about here, Sen?"_

_And that's how Byakuya met Ah-Un, and a dragon joined the family compound._

Yes, life was good. Kuchiki Byakuya sighed in contentment as he held Orihime pillowed against his chest in their post-coital drowsy silence.

When Kurosaki Ichigo questioned Byakuya's support for Orihime's conception of a new 14th Division, a project which would require much paperwork, lack of sleep, and funding, the noble man smirked his trademark smirk.

One part of him pitied the spiky orange-haired man's lack of understanding of Orihime even after all one century while the majority of him was just gloating and happy with the fact that Orihime chose to love Byakuya instead of the shinigami standing before him.

"Oi, what's so funny?"

"You ought to know by now, Kurosaki Ichigo…"

Byakuya dignifiedly walked away.

"Know what, Byakuya?"

Still smirking, the nobleman replied.

"It's normal."

**A/N **HAHAHA! Poor Ichigo, still missing the point, and missed the bus too (in terms of wooing and marrying Orihime). But anyways, I digress. Just some pointers about the newer characters…

Sora is the name of Orihime's brother, and I'm certain that she would have wanted to keep him in her memory by naming her first born after him. She did love him a lot!

Kaguya is the mythic Princess of the Moon. I wanted all three siblings to share their mother's ties to the cosmic and sky forces.

Sen'ichiroudo literally means "magical forest elf that lives for thousands of years". Orihime was always going on about the little green men :D It's a nice mix between her and the symbolism of eternity, which I've used in reference to Byakuya up to this point in _Stitch by Stitch._

Just to clarify, Ah-Un is a character from Inuyasha. It (They?) is Sesshomaru's dragon, and yes, they do use lightening as a means of attack. Very suitable for Sen.

Bokusenou-sama is a tree and a character from Inuyasha as well. His roots run deep. *strokes imaginary beard

Perhaps, the children's speech was a tad formal (they are twelve in this portrayal), but being trained as a Kuchiki probably means that their vocabulary and way of speaking would be a lot more adult-like.

What else is there to say?

Oh yes, tell me what you think. Suggestions and feedback are welcome to pave the way for following chapters. What other plots do you want for family fics?

Until next time!

Your loyal and obedient writer,

Checkmate

I do not own Bleach.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N **This chapter is the self-commiseration of a certain guy who missed the bus… Enough said…

Oh yes, beware of swear words…

**Oculus **

He couldn't believe it.

_He didn't want to believe it. _

When he heard those wraith-like whispers storm the barricades of his office, he dismissed them as the churning of the Seireitei rumour mill _snapping at his subordinates for talking shit and assigning the ones caught red-faced, gossiping, to toilet cleaning and latrine duty. _

_They were lies. They had to be!_

Except they weren't.

Nowadays, he walks around with a storm tide _an ocean of salty regrets _whispering and hissing in his ears. Everything else was dull, muted, like he was separated from the others. The world became bland, a weak watery grey as though an amateur painter had mixed black and white together in cloudy water and smeared it across the landscape of his eyes.

In reality, things weren't grey. In fact, the Seireitei is bustling like it has never before in a long while. _A happy bustling of the most nauseating kind._

Red banners with fortune-laden calligraphy and sakura-heavy branches laden with blossoms festooned the barracks and the streets of the Seireitei, extending beyond the military stronghold to the Rukongai districts. The poor in the slum districts would be receiving free food as a result of the three-day celebration of _that joyous event-_

_That damn bastard is letting everyone know how happy he is!_

Ichigo had to clench his teeth as the snatches of conversation he heard _as he drifted like a Scrooge in the middle of Christmas celebrations _were bursting at the seams with cheerful anticipation and bright happiness.

"_Oh I'm so glad it ended up all for the better-"_

"_Unusual at first glance, but they make such a handsome couple when you look closer."_

"_They can finally be together…"_

"_How romantic! They were both fighting for their lov-"_

_Not that word! Especially not that word. _Everything was like a damn radio that wouldn't _bloody turn off! _

Stomping towards the Fifth Division, Ichigo stepped into his office and slammed the door more harshly than necessary. Making his way across the room, he dropped like a heavy sack into the chair, bracing his elbows on the desk as he ran his hands agitatedly through his spiky orange locks.

He had been trying to ignore this latest development in his usual way – fighting and hacking away at Hollows. When that method was exhausted, he happily engaged dueling with Kenpachi at the 11th Division. His two bloodthirsty matches there _a result of his pent up emotions – anger, distress, confusion, envy – _had earned him a stern reprimand from Yamamoto Soutaichou, and branded him forever in the minds of the lower-ranked shinigami of the 11th as a dangerous creature, to be equally feared as their captain.

She_ had been worried too, uncomprehending why he would deliberately aim to inflict harm on himself to the point of nearly engaging and recklessly unleashing his Inner Hollow. _

Ichigo tried to take steady breaths, but succeeded only in gulping like a beached _dying _fish on sand.

He could still remember those eyes watching him anxiously _irises holding promises like a wishing well, dusky and luminous as a star-studded night sky. _It was at that point that Ichigo finally realised something was missing. _Something in her eyes was missing. Something which she used to hold towards him. _

_Something which had burned so fiercely within her gaze when she looked at him during her youth, when they were alive…was now missing. _

The nebula, the comet of some unnamed emotion had cooled _weathered like a bottle of fine red wine_ – with none of that former brilliance or intensity – to only a pulse of contentment _peace made with something_.

That was the moment when the fog cleared, and the torrents of panic slammed into him _knocking the breath out of his lungs as Logic and cold, cold Realisation set in his lungs, squeezing his heart with glee._

A wedding.

_He needed to attend a wedding, but not just any wedding, no, it had to be the fucking union between his gentle best friend and the most unlikeliest of candidates. _

Inoue Orihime is marrying Kuchiki Byakuya.

Orihime is marrying Byakuya.

_Orihime is marrying Kuchiki-bloody-aristocratic-arrogant-Byakuya!_

A splintering sound was heard.

Ichigo looked at his bleeding hand and at the fist-sized hole in his desk. _A normal 3__rd__ seat shinigami would not have an office of his own, but Ichigo as Seireitei's constant hero was an exception._

Placing his fist gingerly on the desk, the dubbed 'Strawberry' looked at his office. Nothing in it called to him. Sure it was his, but he was ambivalent about the décor and the whole room in general _he did not consider it his. _

Leaning back in his chair, Ichigo stared at the wall ahead. _All this meant nothing to him. He didn't want it. _

And that sounded pretty ungrateful considering the conditions in the peasant districts – 74th District, 59th District – and how the poor got by with their hand-to-mouth day to day existence, fearing and worrying about their next meal, about where to sleep, about where to hide from the loan sharks. Despite Hirako's strange tendencies _Hirako Shinji as a Seireitei captain, who would have thought?_, Ichigo had it pretty well, a comfortable life carved out for him.

_But Ichigo was beyond caring._

He wanted something. _No, he wanted _someone.

And that someone is now beyond his reach. Even in the same room as her during the General meetings of captains and vice-captains, her Heart is so far away._ As far as a Galaxy or a Milky Way apart… _

Why did he not notice?

It was blatantly obvious now _but hindsight is twenty/twenty._

Orihime _his dear Nakama _had been in Love with him. So very in love with him. _And Ichigo had not noticed a jot. _

Not when they were both living. Not when he died and she lived on in the Human World. Not even when she achieved demi-Immortality _to match Kuchiki Byakuya's lifespan._

He had not noticed _and when he did notice, she had already moved on with nimble, dancing feet in high heel shoes (whose names for the life of him he cannot remember, although Byakuya did!), _Heart, Mind, Soul and Gaze fixated on _and reciprocated by _a different, unexpected man.

When did Orihime fall out of love with him?

Ichigo could not pinpoint the exact moment. _He had been too caught up in Senna. _Drunk with happiness _like an addict's high to a shake of ice, or a gambler who played a lucky scoring hand_, he had virtually ignored much of his nakama – Rukia, Renji, Orihime, Chad, and Ishida – during his engagement. It was a happy honeymoon period when everything seemed new, and he was trying new stuff, cashing in on the dating he never experienced in his Human life span.

If he had seen past that drunken gloss _a gauzy veil like a coy curtain in a pleasure quarter of the Red Light district_, he would have seen Senna being unfaithful a lot sooner. _He staunchly defended Senna, made excuses for her absences, never suspecting anything … as he was 'cuckolded'. _

Nine months later, he left a train wreck of a relationship behind.

He started retracing his steps back to his friends, who were good enough to look past his behaviour and welcome him back. _Rukia gave him a hell of a punchbag pummeling, screaming insults and obscenities, before grudgingly allowing him back with a threat "not to be so dumb again". _

Ichigo agreed with her, and returned to a more normal semblance of his life _pushing the spectre of Senna behind him._

He found during this transition, convalescent period that he missed Orihime's presence, her voice, her smiles…everything about the female healer.

So he sought her out, learning about her success as a CEO of the healthy and yoghurt drinks company, Wahaha Ltd, in the Human World _ashamed with himself at not noticing her accomplishments much earlier._

He sensed that Orihime was a lot busier then. She would make time for him. She would listen to him. She still worried about him _but something was off. Something that Ichigo couldn't put a finger on. _

He argued with himself, saying he was being paranoid after his breakup and ruined relationship. Except he couldn't argue the fact that Orihime … did not need him anymore. She didn't look back at him as she hurried between the Spirit and the Human World.

She was sure-footed, confident, Independent.

_She doesn't need my protection._

It was a startling realization, and Ichigo had to force himself not to be jealous of her Humanity, her success while living _how she made something of her life_, and her free spirit.

_He should have seen the signs. He should have known…_

He should have known when he found her often at the Sixth Division or in the company of Rukia and Byakuya.

He should have known when she started wearing a silver necklace _the chain were sakura petals _with a 'B' on the end, dangling just above the outer curves of her soft, full breasts.

He should have known that time when he thought Byakuya was behind him _sensing the nobleman's reiatsu, _whirling back to snap or lash out at the aristocrat _only to find Orihime standing behind him, blocking his arm with a defensive karate position. _

Another person's reiatsu would only coat an individual if they were in constant proximity to each other, or if they were having se-

Ichigo did not want to imagine it. He did not want to picture Orihime's perfect form naked and writhing in ecstasy beneath a male form that was not his own, let alone Byakuya's.

He was incredulous when the news broke.

_An emergency meeting of captains in the Central Meeting Hall of the First Division._

_Old Gramps questioning Orihime and Byakuya, who were standing next to each other. _

_An incomprehensible leaking of news. Accusations. _

_An affair…_

…_an affair between a Human and Shinigami captain…hidden for four years…_

_The intense interrogation, strained but no raised voices – except his._

"_That's bullshit! Inoue would never…not with _Him!_"_

_Then, that dreadful culmination:_

"_Is it true?"_

"_Yes, Kurosaki-kun."_

He felt like dying then. _No he was dying. _Hisagi had said that Ichigo turned ashen-faced like an invalid _or someone in Denial._

Furious arguments spewed forth from his mouth _how it wasn't possible, when could it have happened, how?_

And to notice to his dread that he was the only one furious, ranting like a madman. All the other captains were calm, solemn _dare he say it, _expectant_._

_They knew._

_Had known for a long time._

_Even Soi Fon knew, as she and the other captains held a semblance of pity in their eyes when they looked at him._

He had been out of the loop for so long, wrapped in himself, his problems, his take on the world _that he had not noticed when the world moved on from him._

Chad had married Tatsuki. She taught at the local dojo _where she first fought Ichigo _while her Mexican husband composed and taught guitar music.

Ishida had followed in his father's footsteps and became an adept surgeon, only to infuriate his father during his final years when he gave it all up and opened a chain of tailor stores, often frequented by the rich and famous.

Ichigo had always been searching to get stronger. Bull-headed, stubborn, determined. Qualities which were good for fighting, but not for interacting with others.

He enjoyed being a hero, or an anti-hero given his initial reluctance to have anything to do with a zanpakutou and shinigami duties.

He had considered using all manners of ways to block any union between Orihime and Byakuya.

After the unpleasant discovery of their concealed affair, Ichigo had used whatever bureaucratic roadblocks he could find to stop them. _He was being childish. He was being unfair. He did not care. _

He persuaded the reformed Central 46 to veto Byakuya's permission to marry Orihime. Combined with the Kuchiki clan's disapproval, Ichigo had thought it would be enough to end this mess of things.

What he had not expected was the couple's determination to fight back _to be together._

He shouldn't have been surprised when Orihime managed to win over gradually _stitch by stitch _the Elders of the Kuchiki clan, defeating them completely. _He thought the long-term strain would burden and discourage her._

He was proved dreadfully wrong at her physical, mental and emotional strength.

Byakuya too persisted, unrelenting.

Ichigo was forced to admit defeat not when Orihime acquired the necessary lifespan, even though she is still technically Human and alive, to match Byakuya's, but when she joyfully, shyly announced to the assembly of Seireitei divisions that she is pregnant.

Unohana taichou can be a fast mouthpiece in terms of spreading news.

_Triplets._

_As though one child is not enough, the bastard has to ply Orihime with three of his brats!_

Ichigo knew he had lost, and lost badly. He had no one to lay the blame at but himself _for not noticing, for ignoring the obvious signs. _

It was selfish of him to consider that Orihime would be forever waiting for him, standing at his beck and call to heal, to comfort, to speak to.

_The scene changes like a Shakespeare play. It's a different act now. He has a different role to play. From the main character, he has been relegated to supporting actor. _

Everyone is standing in a church. _A non-descript church in Karakura…_

From the light streaming in through the oculus, the rounded church window, Inoue looked _radiant _in her wedding dress, standing in front of the altar.

Bare shoulders, the sunset of her hair curled and slightly pinned up but mainly left to fall down her back _like rivulets of fire_ was interweaved with winking seed pearls and hisbiscus-shaped diamonds _which caught the sunbeams, each refracting a perfect mini rainbow _in the air like a gas lamp halo crowning her head.

She had abandoned the veil, saying that she did not want to cover her head. _It's springtime, Kurosaki-kun, it would be so warm! _Her eyes though spoke a different message. _There's nothing for me to be ashamed of._

And that was actually a bold assertion given that her pregnant form was gracefully showing itself in the white wedding dress _look closer and you will see the lightest of the lightest shade of purple actually forming the material. _Byakuya's favourite colour…and a historical association with Royalty…

Orihime had initially planned to only celebrate her wedding in the Seireitei, in the sakura orchards of the Kuchiki estate, in a traditional Japanese ceremony, wearing a vibrant red kimono.

She had not planned on the groom adamantly insisting that they perform the ritual rites in the Human World as well.

Orihime could pay no heed to the malicious whispers around her _under-the-breath remarks about her 'fatherless, Love child' and being a single mother_, but Byakuya could not – and would not tolerate theses criticisms about his lover and the mother of his children.

He got his way _as usual_, and there was a double marriage – one in the Seireitei and one in Karakura Town. From hence onwards, even the human register, the _koseki, _would have a record of Orihime _not Inoue any longer but _Kuchiki.

And Ichigo felt as though his windpipe was getting blocked as he watched the wedding proceedings. _Twice. _

Renji said he was a masochist. _Perhaps Ichigo is one._

Since he cannot be with Orihime _not anymore, not in this lifetime, not for another lifetime since she has an immortal lifespan _he would have to satisfy his misery by watching her happiness _which if he were a good friend, he would not begrudge, but Ichigo would hardly call himself a 'good friend'. _

Or perhaps more accurately, when he deliberately chose not to be one.

He had forced the truth out of Rukia, who knew belatedly about the affair. She staunchly defended both her _nii-sama _and Orihime.

Ichigo learned to his additional wallowing self-pity and melancholy that the two ceremonies he witnessed were merely for show. _Ukitake-san and Yoruichi-san along with Rukia and Renji were the witnesses to the private, secret, brief wedding ceremony that Byakuya entered into with Orihime. Fearing the clan may force him to wed an 'acceptable' female candidate, he pledged his love and loyalty to Orihime during a dark night, the couple signing their names beside each other under the gazes of their closest, reliable friends. _

_Should the clan force Byakuya, the wedding seal on the certificate would trump all their efforts to separate him from Orihime. _

Ichigo was tired.

Now as he sits in his dark office, with a carafe of sake in both hands, gazing at the twinkling stars, he ponders and sits and drinks.

"Ya need to let go."

A hand on his shoulder.

"Go away, Hirako."

"It will get better," said the former Vaizard as he turned to leave.

_No._

_No it won't. It fucking won't. _

_Ichigo had messed up big time, lost someone who would otherwise have been his loving Soulmate due to his own stupidity, with no chance for redemption or a second opportunity. _

Even Orihime had spoken with him, pled with him, to move on.

_Not yet._

_Ichigo can't. It was too soon to move on. He didn't want to anyways._

Was this what Orihime felt whenever he was with Senna or fighting Hollows with Rukia?

If it was this feeling, Ichigo was sorry that he was the one who subjected her to its depressive pall. _Fucking sorry, but it didn't matter now anymore, right?_

_Karma is a right bastard._

With the alcohol finally working its way into his system, Ichigo slowly closed his eyes, head awkwardly lolling to one side.

_I'm such a fool._

His last coherent thought…

_Eternity is going to be a long time to be lonely. _

**A/N **Now just to get one thing straight, I don't hate Ichigo (he has his occasional bright moments of empathy) but for the most part, I do find him annoying. Not only is he ridiculously overpowered (to the detriment of character development in other important characters, naturally Orihime, but also Sado), he's simply too much of a boy and not the man Orihime needs.

Ichigo is still in thrall of his power as a shinigami. He's not ready to settle down yet. And for someone like Orihime, who has waited so long for him (her heart staying still despite all odds), I find that it's an unfair deal, an unequal bargain that has to be remedied.

Hence, the ByaHime pairing that I'm rigorously promoting – hopefully to become mainstream, even if it is a crack pairing.

I know many of the readers here are fans of other pairings and I fully respect that. I could not be more glad that people who support other pairings, whether Ulquihime, Ichihime, Ichiruki, etc. are still open-minded enough to read other works of other pairings.

I myself support HitsuMatsu, Ulquihime, Ichihime (good stories only though) along with the occasional RenHime and Ishihime. For goodness sake, don't you know that there are UkitakexOrihime and ShinjixOrihime fanfics? Search them up on the fanfic search engine, if you don't. Some of them are actually quite good.

So no flaming please. Just your opinions and constructive feedback.

Thanks ever so much,

Checkmate

Do not own Bleach.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N **THAT'S IT, KUBO! THIS IS THE STRAW THAT BROKE THE CAMEL'S BACK! HOW COULD YOU HAVE KILLED OFF BYAKUYA IN YOUR LATEST CHAPTER?! (The insinuation with the breaking Senbonzakura and Byakuya's disappearing hand all point to that conclusion. ARE YOU TRYING TO PUT PEOPLE OFF FROM READING YOUR MANGA!? Because with the way things are heading, that might be the end result. I already know of a superb Byakuya artist on deviantart who has taken a hiatus from reading Bleach because Byakuya has been injured to the point of fatality. _)

I swear if you don't let our Orihime-chan heal and revive our Kuchiki noble, I'll be signing off your manga updates as well. _Mataku! _Even if I dislike Yamamoto Soutaichou at times (because he's too concerned with 'world justice' over the individual), that's not to say, I endorse him being cleaved in half!

_Huff…huff…_

I apologise, readers, for that rant, but I had to get it out of my system. To say that I am sorely disappointed with the plot development is an understatement. Who's going to be next on the chopping block? Hitsugaya Toushirou? (_The God of Manga forbid!)_

This latest drabble in _Stitch by Stitch _is a product of my anger. People also say that a healthy relationship needs three elements: the happiness, the sadness, and the anger. So without further ado, I give you the 'anger' bit that has so far been missing in this drabble series.

This is my imagination of what could have transpired between our Aristocrat and Weaving Princess if Orihime had been captured in Soul Society during the rescue Rukia arc.

Slightly AU-ish…if you want to, take a look at my other fanfic _Pride before the Fall_. This chapter is partly related to that.

**Oracle**

All of the captains and vice captains in the First Division meeting hall stood in shocked silence. Yamamoto Soutaichou's eyes were opened.

The scene they are witnessing is an unusual one _but with the invasion of the ryoka, hardly anything this past week could be termed 'usual' or normal._

The only female human in the group of five that breached the Dangai to enter the Seireitei and rescue Kuchiki Rukia, is glaring with resolute anger at the Sixth Division _taichou_.

Silence reigns now, but ten minutes ago, every shinigami in the Great Hall were spectators to the most violent verbal chastisement. _No one_ _in living memory has dared to publicly criticize Kuchiki Byakuya in such a way. Soul King above! No one has done what this petite human healer has accomplished to the Kuchiki clan, and live to tell the tale. _

By feudal standards, Kuchiki Byakuya is within his right as one of the leaders of the four noble houses to execute her where she stands for staining his honour…and yet, he still hasn't.

Granted, his frame is trembling with fury, and his fists are clenched _no one can see that his nails are biting into his skin deep enough to draw crimson, crescent rivulets in the fist of his palms. _

What brought about this ringing silence?

_Ten minutes prior…_

"Keep her in a separate prison compound from the rest of the _ryoka_. She's far more dangerous than the others! Make sure that she will have no contact with them or Kuchiki Rukia. Under no circumstance, is she to be allowed near the Tower of Penitence!"

Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto's voice reverberated in the Meeting Hall.

He has called an emergency joint session of captains and vice captains, at which this female _ryoka _is present. It is still unclear whether _this child _has had any hand in the murder of Aizen Sousuke.

Standing in the middle of the room, with her hands bound and a red reiatsu collar around her neck to prevent her from using her powers, the human girl with the strangest colour of hair and eyes appeared innocuous _fragile even_. But appearances are deceptive.

From the group of five, of which three males - _two human boys of which one is a Quincy, and a member of the Shiba clan -_ are in the current custody of the Fourth Division, and the _ryoka _shinigami has, via a report, been rescued and taken away by Shihoin Yoruichi, this slender girl with the willowy frame was the one who was able to reach Kuchiki Rukia _and was nearly successful in escaping_.

It was Kuchiki Byakuya who had stopped her.

_Inoue Orihime… what a strange human you are…_

Said Kuchiki captain has uncharacteristically fixated the human girl with his entire attention during the interrogation and meeting, an unidentifiable emotion ruled his cobalt eyes.

_Anger? Fascination? Both? _

_How could this mere slip of a girl, a mere human, reject Reality? _

_How dare she think herself capable of overturning thousands of years of law and tradition – and all just to rescue Rukia?_

So Byakuya provoked her, taunted her _this one human girl who has been the Devil's Advocate to his resolution that the laws of Soul Society must be upheld. _

It was his final denigration of her efforts _"So much for love"_, belittling her friendship with Rukia and the notion of family affection, which unexpectedly caused Orihime to snap _a comet sparking a new course across the pitch black sky_.

"What do you want from me, Kuchiki-sama? Admit that I am wrong? No. No. Never!"

Sunset-auburn waves swayed, punctuating the spoken negative with a shake of the head.

The young girl's outburst brought the entire attention of everyone assembled to her and the nobleman. Like a dam that broke under the weight of the tide of emotion within her, words poured forth from her rosy chapped lips.

"You say that your Pride and the Laws and Rules of Soul Society are more important than your own sister! But let me tell you this, you throw away a better Pride and a better Legacy, worth more than all the prestige of your clan combined!

Rukia-san is yours! Yes! She's yours.

Always respectful of any mention of you…and this is how you repay such sisterly devotion-"

A voice tried to cut across Orihime's, but her voice only rose in volume, racing across the room so that everyone could hear her, gaining greater intensity than the Soutaichou's.

"Watch her in these final days if you dare. Rukia-san is yours. _She's a Kuchiki! Worthy to be standing next to you in every way!_

Go to her execution, stand there indifferently with _all your clan Pride _if you wish," sarcasm oozed through the tide of her words, "and see if you can live with yourself afterwards, how many sleepless nights you'll endure from her innocent blood staining your Conscience!"

His hand lashed out.

"Kuchiki-taichou!" cried Unohana Retsu, horrified.

"Byakuya!" Ukitake Jyuushirou yelled in reprimand.

Kuchiki Byakuya glared down at the young woman-child before him, his palm still tingling from the slap which he gave her. To his anger, she did not break down in tears nor did she even raise a hand to cradle her injured cheek.

He had to stop her. From her diminutive position, her voice made her stature grow _like something unstoppable, like something omniscient, like an oracle…which spoke the Harsh Truth._

But it seems even physical violence cannot trim her tongue for she is speaking still. The power is still there though the volume has diminished.

Byakuya does not know why, but he would have preferred if she had been yelling. The measured, dulcet tones of her voice seem to emphasize her words _setting them into stone as certainties, prophecies to come._

"But you will not succeed, Kuchiki-sama, perhaps all for the best towards that one thread of remorse and uncertainty which I've read within your Soul!"

Byakuya froze. He remembered when she had done battle with him, and he had wrapped his hand around her tender neck, her nails digging into his wrists and forearm.

_She knows… she knows about his promise, about Hi-_

"Rukia-san will be safe because Kurosaki-kun will come to save her…and he will succeed."

Seeing the arrogant skepticism on his features, Orihime's anger returned.

"Yes. That human boy, Kurosaki Ichigo will save Rukia-san. I have absolute faith in him… and you shall be defeated, Kuchiki-sama."

Walking towards the noble with steady footfalls, Orihime is unafraid _dragging her guards along with her by the ropes attached to her collar_.

"Wait and see, Kuchiki-sama. You will be defeated. … When you fight Kurosaki-kun, look into his eyes. Look hard into his eyes," _the comet within her eyes shone with confidence, bursting into stardust and sunbeams _

"and see the better man and the better brother that you will _never be!_"

_she is wrong_

_how dare she_

_a mere child_

_who knows nothing!_

"BYAKUYA!"

The familiar sound of a sword being unsheathed, rang clearly, before it descended.

It was the collar which saved Inoue Orihime from being decapitated by Kuchiki Byakuya. But to the consternation and amazement of the sword wielder and the other shinigami assembled, the young girl did not flinch or bat an eye.

_Senbonzakura _was actually lodged into the side of the collar, and did nick her skin.

A trail of cold red _sensuously _slid its way down her neck to her collar bone before being absorbed by the pick material of her shirt.

It was her final sentence which shook Byakuya to the core.

"_And should I die before Kurosaki-kun arrives, … my blood … would have been well spent."_

As Orihime is led away to her cell, Byakuya is left standing _but not as the winner._

_No. He has lost. Lost to a human girl, who has predicted his downfall, like a seer. _

Ichimaru Gin's sly comment only further cemented his humiliation. "Saa, she's an interestin' one, isn't she?"

Byakuya swept out of the First Division without another word, Abarai Renji following at a safe distance.

To his horror that night, he was woken from a fitful sleep, unable to regain slumber. _The first of her prophecy is already coming true…_

As he paced up and down his gardens _like a wraith_, an inner revelation drew him up short, breathless.

Had there been no audience of captains, if he had been alone with her in a different setting, say, her cell, he would not have stopped at the decapitation point. He would have tried to overwhelm her and win in a different way.

The only way he would have left to prove his superiority and his rightness in his decisions. _He would have thrown her against the nearest hard surface, and ravaged her. Sink into her hourglass form, wrenching cries of pleasure and pain from those rosy lips, trying to prove a point which he already lost. _

_He would have lost himself in her… in the hopes of gaining that conviction which shone so brightly under her skin, within her – that saving Rukia is right, that opposing the laws is correct – to fill that Void of Belief in himself._

**A/N **Yup, that's the first (and admittedly, very fiery) argument between our Leading Lady and her Man.

There is a fine line between Love and Hate. Flip the coin, and see if it's heads or tails, but it remains part of the same coin. Get my drift?

In my Imagination, where the Bleach world has more Orihime plot developments, if Orihime had been captured and met Byakuya, I'm certain this is what she would have said, and told him off quite boldly. :P

The speech I crafted for Orihime is inspired by the Tower Scene in _Anne of the Thousand Days _(I know, I know, I'm an avid admirer of Anne Boleyn but this scene when Anne tells off Henry VIII and predicts _accurately _her daughter Elizabeth I's rise to the throne is epic gold and perfectly suitable for a showdown between Byakuya and Orihime. Tee-hee. :)

Byakuya's behaviour in this chapter was not heartwarming, but I tried to show his interest in Orihime via his obsession – to taunt her beliefs, to provoke her to contradict him. (I suppose it mirrors Ulquiorra's psychological attempts to break down Orihime – and in the end, it is his ideology which is destroyed.)

So please a leave a review! Feedback would be much appreciated.

Just to tease you all a bit, that slap will be returned in a future chapter. (Ooohh)

Stay tuned,

Checkmate (who does not own Bleach)

P.S. "So much for love" is a quote taken from the Lion, the Witch and Wardrobe. The witch says this to Aslan just before she stabs him.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N **Just in time for Halloween! Trick or Treat, minna! Happy spookiness wherever you are.

PS. This is a high school AU.

**Poltergeist**

_One hundred candles. _

One hundred tales on this Hallow's Eve.

_We are waiting._

_Sweet child, Dear One, Beauty of the Thousand Tales, weave us another story. We hunger for your voice. _

_Blessed Siren, gifted with Imagination._

_Weave… weave… the lonely strands together so we can be together as One._

The Cold Ones wait for your Voice.

"Oh, I'm so excited. I can't wait!"

"Mou, Orihime, you get extra hyper over Halloween. Even Christmas doesn't excite you this much."

"But Tatsuki-chan, Halloween is _special_! Dressing up in costumes is fun, but I love the 'One Hundred Candles' game the most!"

"I should have known…"

"Oh what's wrong, Tatsuki-chan? Don't you like the game?" Orihime awarded her best friend an endearing pout.

"Demo, Orihime-chan!" here a red-head girl wearing glasses jostled closer to the bosom beauty. "Don't you get afraid of possible ghosts?" Chizuru tried to snuggle closer to her princess, her fingers twitching with the ache to grope overflowing flesh. Fortunately, she was prevented by a timely smack upside the head by an athletic girl with spiky black hair.

"Baka! You're probably using it as an excuse just to snuggle" exclaimed Tatsuki furiously.

Light-hearted, everyday bickering filled the air, permeated with the occasional with the familiar chiming giggles.

Orihime sighed happily. Tonight, all of her _nakama _will be at her apartment, after their trick or treating was over, to participate in the One Hundred Candles storytelling game.

She was aware how grumpy Kurosaki-kun had been. His reluctance stemmed from his disbelief of the occult, horoscopes and ghost stories alike. It was a miracle how Ishida-kun and Sado-kun managed to convince him to attend. Probably Renji and Rukia's teasing at his stick-in-the-mud attitude was another factor. "Not man enough for a few ghost stories, Ichigo?" Abarai jeered, which earned him a sucker punch to the gut.

Orihime loved the game, the atmosphere of calm and anticipation, and the telling of stories, the fantastical taken to the extremes.

Sitting together in the dark in a large circle – Orihime managed to convince more pople to join in this year – , one hundred candles would be lit, and everyone would go around the circle telling ghost stories. Each time someone finishes their tale, a candle is blown out.

The room grows darker…

and darker…

until by the time the last candle is extinguished, a supernatural entity appears.

Orihime also likes the other version whereby after each light is extinguished, a spirit supposedly joins the room. So by the time one hundred stories have been told, and the pitch black of Night seeps in, there are one hundred spirits in the room.

Either way, Orihime likes being scared.

"_That's kinda weird, Orihime."_

"_Oh Tatsuki-chan, you know I like to tell stories."_

"_Well, you are the best storyteller in our whole group."_

And this game dated all the way back to the Edo period, known as Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai, translated to mean 'A Gathering of One Hundred Supernatural Tales'.

_And so it began…_

"Ooohh, make this your best, Orihime-chan!" Rukia stage whispered. "It's the final candle."

"Hai. I'll do my best."

"_Back in the feudal mists of the Meido era, there lived a noble lord. He was the head of a great noble family, one of the four cardinal points. The Lord of the East…whose land is forever spring, with sakura filling the air"_

_Sweet lips, keep speaking…keep weaving…_

A cold draft slipped under the door, causing the flame on the candle stub to flicker to and fro, in a hypnotizing maner.

"_Being a strong and capable leader, he became the focus of envy by the Lord of the West, the land of the setting sun and the eternal moon. _

_The Western Lord was sick with jealousy because the Eastern Lord had a beautiful wife, whose beauty shone on par with the stars in the Milky Way. _

_The Western Lord hatched a plan, whereby he lured the Lord of the East into a trap. A monstrous beast rended and tore his flesh into ten thousand pieces, never to be mended or returned into a whole. _

_Hearing of her husband's death, the Rose princess wept a lake of tears, isolating herself on an island away from the lecherous grasp and gaze of the Western Lord. _

_Unable to win her love, the Western Lord's heart grew cold and bitter. Using a sword of illusions, he broke through her barrier and stabbed her. The ghost of the Eastern Lord howled at seeing his wife's painful death, bending the forces of Nature to heed his curse on the Western Lord._

"_When all three,_

_Trinity reunite,_

_Marks the time of rebirth_

_To take back what is Mine!"_

_Yes…I have been waiting…_

The final candle was blown out by the wind. The group of high schoolers tensed. A sense of unease trickled out of their pores, mingling with their sweat and heavy breathing.

"What just happened?" whimpered Keigo, cowering behind Mizuiro.

"Let's really see if there are spirits joining us!"

"Orihime!" shrieked Rukia in fright, clinging onto Renji in trepidation.

"Let's not go too far, shall we, Inoue-san?" queried Ishida Uryuu with a nervous adjustment of his glasses.

"Oh, it's Halloween minna. Let's have fun tonight!"

_Use the board, dearest. Use the board._

Orihime drew out a scrabble board with different letters of the alphabet tumbling onto the floor.

"Spirit-san, are you here with us?"

To the horror of the others gathered, three tiles moved, gliding on the board with no assistance.

Y-E-S

Morbid curiousity filled all their veins as they started to question the supernatural presence in the room with them.

"Tell us your name." Ichigo demanded, breathless and eyes wide with astonishment.

Two tiles moved.

N-O

"Why are you here with us?" asked Tatsuki.

"I W-A-N-T"

"What do you wan?" asked Orihime, with a curious tilt of her head.

A long pause then…

Three tiles shifted.

Y-O-U

There was a sudden flurry of movement as Ichigo reached out and overturned the board.

"This is going too far," he yelled in fright. "I told you not to play to the extreme," he scolded Orihime in panic as his eyes darted everywhere in panic.

A buffet of cold wind knocked him to the floor.

A silver shape, a figure…of a man, started to form in the shadows in the center of the room.

Screams and yells echoed off the walls.

And through it all, Orihime was still kneeling, frozen in place at the approaching apparition.

A man… a beautiful man with noble delineations to his features…glided towards her

A man, whose flesh is bleeding rivulets of blood from his chest and his eyes, was reaching for her, open palm upturned, in invitation.

Orihime felt her breath and throat close up in fear.

She knows who he is. And to see the Frankenstein of her Imagination conjured up before her eyes robbed her of her speech.

"_Dearest…"_

the man spoke, but blood accompanied his words.

The murdered Eastern Lord, here before her, from her ramblings of the mind…

"_Dearest, I've waited so long … to see you again…"_

The last thing Orihime saw was a wave of black robes and bloodstained cherry blossom petals descend on her.

And at the last moment…

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

**A/N **Teehee. I know, I intend to leave you with that open ending. Is it real or just a Halloween nightmare? Is all this in Orihime's Imagination or in real time? You decide.

Ahh, the hypocrisy as well as the beauty of storytellers…

Happy Halloween, dear Readers! Take care on your walk home. MUAHAHAHA!


	20. Chapter 20

**Pseudonym**

"A single man in possession of a large fortune must be in want of a wife." _So says Jane Austen in that famous, explosive opening line in 'Pride and Prejudice'. _

Inoue Orihime would like to add that this same generalized principle must also apply to widowers too, and when the widower in question is Kuchiki Byakuya, _well_, hardly anything more needs to be said then with regards to the flocks of interested women.

During her teenage years when she joined Kurosaki Ichigo in his various excursions into the Seireitei, Orihime was subconsciously aware _in the moments when she was not doing battle, training or healing the injured _of the popularity Rukia's older brother commanded in the female population of Soul Society, seated and unseated Shinigami, unmarried _and married (!) _women alike. Having no romantic inclinations towards the handsome, dignified clan leader – which was a rarity and one of the few exceptions one can count on one hand – Orihime found the sighings and swoonings of the besotted women … rather funny.

Oh, it seemed so cruel to say such a thing, but the reality was that the scenes were always so humourous. _The interested women never took note of the man's ceaseless devotion to the memory of his late deceased wife. _

The sixth division captain would walk past, and the females in question would _generally_ speaking giggle and twitter into their hands or melt into a blushing, distracted sigh. Only occasionally would a bold female actually try to catch the Kuchiki nobleman's eyes and make advances on him. _That was more the case for women from aristocratic circles who shallow-mindedly believe that they were on a more superior footing to the common female shinigami and had more claim and right to assert themselves to Byakuya. _

And in all these various encounters, Byakuya would steadfastly ignore those women. If the slight twitches and creases in his brows were any indication, he found these experiences seemingly tiresome and irritating as much as the superficial women found enjoyment and pleasure at watching him.

It was only through polite consideration and a lot of tongue and cheek biting that Orihime did not burst into laughter every time she saw such occurrences. She wasn't able to avoid chortling on one occasion when the Kuchiki leader looked very much put upon, during her training month with Rukia in the Seireitei.

_She had finished training with Rukia earlier that day because the smaller shinigami had an errand to run for Ukitake-taichou, and Orihime decided to head to the Fourth Division to see if there were any tasks she could lend a hand to. En route, she saw a female shinigami apparently confessing her love for the Kuchiki leader in a secluded spot. The reasons given were pretty laughable, and in trying to tiptoe past soundlessly (in vain – she scuffed a pebble on the street), Orihime caught the attention of the nobleman. _

_She was pressing a hand to her mouth as she was trying to surreptitiously creep past. A female might contend that Orihime was heartbroken to hear a female confess to Byakuya, but the latter knew better. Orihime was trying not to laugh as she gave up all pretense and ran past the couple._

_The Kuchiki leader would remember how those eyes were smiling, flashing with teasing laughter as she fled the scene. _It was the first time he took notice of her.

_Orihime in turn had bumped into Kotetsu Isane at the doorway of the Fourth barracks. Urging the vice-captain to create a sound barrier, Orihime gave up all restraints and simply laughed, laughed and laughed, clutching her stomach with tears running down her face in mirth. The baffled Isane could receive no answer as the young human girl kept on laughing, lighting up the Healing Division and its patients with the merriment in her reiatsu, only ceasing to laugh when her stomach was knotted up in slight pain from all that glee._

_And both women never noticed the hidden cobalt eyes gazing with raised brows at one of them. _

It was not surprising that there were so many interested female candidates because on a practical note, there was much speculation that Kuchiki Byakuya would remarry. It was no secret that the issue of remarriage was an agonizing one which the Kuchiki clan elders kept on pushing and reiterating to Byakuya. _Abarai Renji knew whenever the topic was raised because the following day, his captain would be in a foul mood. _In the interests of keeping up the noble Kuchiki bloodline, the question of succession was very much in the Elders' old, singularly-focused, narrow-minded minds.

It wasn't that the Kuchiki clan lacked other males to propagate offspring. It was the unspoken general consensus, _one which other Kuchiki males and distant cousins might resent but would nevertheless have to grudgingly acknowledge, _that Byakuya carried all the traits necessary of a perfect Kuchiki – strength of body and mind; decisive, rational judgment; and imposing enough to keep all Clan members in line. Hence_, like a King or Emperor, _Byakuya had to face that intolerable discussion at each and every of the general family meetings.

The question of an heir was particularly controversial because if Byakuya were to die – Soul King forbid! – the one next in line to succeed would be Rukia, and considering the vehement protestations of the clan when Hisana and Rukia were adopted into the Kuchiki family, the Elders were willing to do anything to prevent such a smear, a tarnish _a disgrace _from occurring and lowering their prided and prestigious family name.

By 'anything', the traditionalists and hardliners meant _anything _even encompassing murder, kidnapping or exile. _It was a constant source of worry for Byakuya who honestly worried for Rukia's wellbeing albeit behind the scenes. _In a power vacuum, the males of the closest-to-pure bloodlines, such as the first and second cousins, including his greedy uncle Sakujun, would step in and vie for the coveted position of clan leader. _Byakuya only thought them shallow and simple in not recognizing the burden and responsibility associated with the title. He was certainly not fond of it – his life would have been so much easier, including his decision to marry Hisana, if he had simply been a lower member of the Kuchiki family and not the clan head –, but neither was he willing to relinquish it to incompetents who would certainly bring down the Kuchiki clan in the long run._

When Orihime first entered a secret relationship with Byakuya, she had little contact with either the clan Elders or other potential brides. It was only when the unexpected couple's four-year relationship was revealed that the match was set to the powder keg.

A self-made businesswoman, not to mention a human, was never a possibility which entered the equation of the Elders' ideals of a _suitable _marriage. Orihime was able to deal with their direct insults, dissents and disapproval, fielding and beating into submission the opposition through her healing skills and business acumen. It was the _women _which she found slimy and pretentiously haughty or 'polite' in disparaging remarks hidden behind the fan, the veiled smile and whispered, hypocritical backbiting.

Orihime's current situation _in a room full of catty tigers, drinking tea _is a case in point.

"I've always found social climbers to be _such _a nuisance. They never seem to know their place. Wouldn't you agree, Inoue-san?"

The barbed insult was clumsily hidden or perhaps Lady Hatsumomo, whom many aristocratic families considered 'the catch of the century' and certainly many men would attest to her beauty, meant the insinuation to hurt and to disturb.

If such was her intent, Orihime certainly wasn't biting the bait and pleasantly returned, "Indeed not."

A petty novice, a scarlet letter by the name of Kasumioji Seiko sneered with an ugly curl to her thin lips. "Of course _you _wouldn't find it disgraceful. After all," here she paused for dramatic effect, "if Byakuya-sama truly loved you, he would not leave you his _mistress_. Know your place, _human _commoner, your status by _respectable _society is no better than a _whore!_"

If Rukia had been present, she would surely have flown into a rage, which would overcome her typical shyness with the Clan elders. But Orihime herself was not perturbed. Starlight turned to steel in silver eyes as they thoughtfully _dismissively _gazed at the ambitious debutante.

"I'd much prefer the label of 'mistress' or 'lover' than to be known under the name of 'wife' when it merely serves as a polite guise for 'whore'."

Orihime's implication about Lady Kasumioji's extramarital affairs sent the good lady surging to her feet in anger and throwing tea at Orihime's lilac yukata.

"How dare you, you plebeian!"

Even seated and looking up at the quivering, standing frame of the incensed noblewoman, Orihime appeared stronger and calm, _the eye of the storm _which cannot be pierced by base remarks.

"I'm no whore, Kasumioji-san. Such 'ladies of the night' share their bodies with many men. My heart and soul have only one Lord – who reciprocates my mind and affections."

"Of course, that is what you would say, you snake! You're nothing but pretension under all that politeness, no different from that _Rukongai trash _who won the Kuchiki name!"

Casually placing her elbow on the armrest of her chair, and resting her temple on her hand, Orihime only showed her anger through narrowing her eyes and the pulsing, flickering flames of her reiatsu, "_Hisana-san _was no 'Rukongai trash' as you put it. She and Byakuya," here the other women stiffened and glared daggers at Orihime's informal use of the nobleman's name, which none of them have ever achieved, "share a connection which no one can intrude upon, and I have accepted that since the beginning.

But allow me a brief observation, Kasumioji-san, of your choice of words. You said "won the Kuchiki name". That's where you and I differ. I care not for the name 'Kuchiki' nor covet the title by adding a 'Lady' to it. I love the _man_, not the name. Perhaps you should look for the _substance_ behind the name."

Said lady reached forward to slap or graze Orihime's cheek when a hand stopped her.

To the surprise of the seated female, and the fear and consternation of the offender, they noticed the hand was male.

"If you know what's good for you, I suggest you do not show your face anywhere near the threshold of my house… _Mrs_. Kasumioji."

Kuchiki Byakuya's eyes were condemning and unforgiving. His distinct lack of use of the word 'Lady' an even more socially-damaging, branding statement and judgment.

When the group of noblewomen dispersed at his entry and his blistering dismissal, Byakuya turned towards the remaining one. Kneeling down, he looked up at her.

"Why did you not tell me about these insults they were leveling at you? … And do not deny the fact, that this is not the first time," he warned as he took a silk hankerchief and dabbed it at the tea stain on Orihime's yukata, but eyes never leaving his lover and one hand possessively cradling her smaller, more delicate one.

"_Anata, _I could have handled them." Orihime smiled reassuringly, her other hand came up to cover Byakuya's. "And knowing how busy you already are with work from the Sixth, I did not want you to deal with _women politics_. They are just as bad if not worse than men's!"

"That's no reason for not alerting me to their offensive slights against your person!"

"Byakuya." Here Orihime leaned down to place a gentle, comforting kiss on his lips.

"I'm alright. I'm a big girl, strong enough to hold my own." Byakuya wanted to disagree, but a slim finger at his lips prevented him.

"I've faced similar in school and worse in Hueco Mundo." The nobleman flinched as he closed his eyes to the truth of her words, and the pain which he could not protect her from.

"Their words are just words. People can say whatever they want, use whatever labels there are to hurt. Those labels have no basis as you and I both know. I only need to know, _and I do know_, that you love me and I, you. That's the only thing that matters."

Pulling her up, Byakuya held his woman close and tight in his arms, one hand fisting in her titian rivulets while he placed kisses on her lips, cheeks and the crown of her head. Feeling the returning embrace, he made a silent vow.

No matter what hurdles and objections Soul Society or his clan threw at him, he will marry Orihime. _She is all but his wife in name._ She is already carrying his children - triplets.

He belonged to her as much as she belonged to him, and the Soul King help those who are blind, ignorant or hateful enough to stop them.

_This is a promise, a promise to finalise and cement the Bond they have from Lovers to Husband and Wife, that he will never break. _

**A/N **A submission which I was trying to inject a humourous tone to it, which ultimately … lapsed back into drama, but hey, that's what happens when immature, catty noblewomen get for messing with Byakuya, and by extension, Orihime. XD

Hope you all liked this chapter!

Inspired by prompt from _Romeo and Juliet_,

Juliet:

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose  
By any other name would smell as sweet."

Checkmate (blubbering into a hankerchief, "Oh Shakespeare, you may be a genius, but at times, you are so unbearably cruel!") XD


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N **I know it's belated for Christmas, but nevertheless…

(Just a heads-up, this is a future fic.)

**Poinsettia **

She resembled a poinsettia _in her character, in her defiance, and in her colourful vivacity_.

To Kuchiki Byakuya, the poinsettia was a strange flower, if it could even be called a flower that is.

_The 'petals' of the E__uphorbia pulcherrima_ _were actually leaves_,_ generally recognised by its flaming red colour, but can also be_ _orange_, _pale green, cream, pink _like a cherry blossom_, white or marbled__. _

It is impossible to ignore her.

Even if she is demure in her opinions during group discussions or merely a spectator, she stood out form the collective background. _Her hair. Her eyes. The soft, voluptuous curves which are not typical of Japanese women. _Kurosutchi Mayuri was once heard speculating that the "human healer" may not be wholly Japanese. _Trust the scientist and Captain of the Twelfth Division to call her a "product of two races or two species". _

Byakuya mentally gave a shake of his head.

He shouldn't be speculating this much, _if at all, _about the human woman _he didn't consider her a child, despite her youth – certainly, not after Hueco Mundo. _But, it was impossible not to, certainly not this evening consisting of a Christmas party in the Kuchiki manor with all the relevant captains, vice-captains and human protectors of Karakura Town present.

_The poinsettia goes by many names, such as the 'Christmas star' in relation to the Star of Bethlehem. The Aztecs named it __Cuitlaxochitl, the "flower that grows in residues or soil". For Mexicans, they call it the "Flor de Pascua", meaning "Easter flower" while in Chile and Peru, it is known as the "Crown of the Andes"._

In terms of star quality, there is no denying that Inoue Orihime is the 'belle of the night', the main focus of many avid, admiring gazes this evening.

Byakuya had hosted this Christmas party on the Kuchiki estate, combining this human celebration with Rukia's engagement to Abarai Renji _who had finally plucked up the courage to propose to his childhood friend and (not-so) secret love. _(In reponse to the question "Will you marry me?", the petite black-haired shinigami just said, "_Finally_! You kept me waiting for so long, you _baka_!") It was a joyous occasion, in keeping with the festive 'Deck-the-Halls' atmosphere, which drew up an inevitably long list of friends, acquaintances and well-wishers.

It was unclear, when the invitations were sent, whether Orihime could make it back for the party since she was studying medicine overseas.

At the high school graduation, the cinnamon-headed beauty had explained that the scholarship opportunity was too good to pass up. _The Seireitei rumour mill churned and stoked speculations that she was physically drawing away from a certain Substitute Shinigami, who (coincidentally?) at the time started dating the revived Memory Rosary, Senna. _

The Kuchiki clan head explicitly claimed disinterest in the matter. _He sent her a hell butterfly, separate from Rukia's personal congratulations, to wish her success the day before she boarded her plane. _

So it was to his surprise and the rest of the guests as well when, about half an hour into the party, the servant at the door warbled out, "Uhh…Inoue-sama. Inoue Orihime-sama, ladies and gentlemen."

Well, the slightly high-pitched warbling was justified when everyone saw who came through the door.

Three years absence had allowed Orihime to flourish from a pretty but hesitant teenager, to a more mature, more self-confident twenty-one year old beauty.

It was in her sure footsteps.

It was in her smile and laughter. "Just _san _is fine, not –_sama. We are among friends, aren't we?"_

Dressed in a strapless mermaid emerald dress, which flattered her siren-beguiling softness, with a holly wreath perched on her fiery locks of hair, Orihime stole the breaths of everyone present. Taking a gentle look at everyone assembled, she spotted Byakuya and purposefully walked towards him.

_For more than a split second, he panicked. _

Steps away from him, she stopped and gave an elegant curtsey.

"_Please forgive my lateness, Byakuya-san. The sun must have set a little earlier today, and my plane could not chase the sunset fast enough!"_

His mind could barely follow her reasoning as he was hit by her perfume, her colours _so very Christmas-like_.

There is tightness in his throat, which is unfamiliar _no,_ _he has experienced such a mortifying tongue-tying state of being…the first time he met Hisana. _He didn't trust himself to speak as the collar of his black Western suit suddenly felt restrictive and hot and itchy. He is afraid that opening his mouth might lead to croaking or even worse, an adolescent-like pitch breaking, worse than the doorman's.

_She has not risen from her curtsey yet, her eyes and head slightly bent downwards. _

The logical, right side of his brain helpfully supplied that not only is the young woman showing him proper respect and acknowledgement, given her late arrival, but also the fact that _he needs to say something! _to avoid embarrassment and rudeness.

_Surely, he could be forgiven for any delays in his reactions. He is a healthy male, considered fairly young by Soul Society standards, who has remained celibate since the passing of his late wife, and he is currently faced with a beautiful female, who he knows through prior interaction and conversations, to be respectful and intelligent._

Byakuya suspects that Orihime does not realise that from his vantage point, he has a very clear view of the outer curves of her breasts and her slender neck. _She has no idea that she is the very picture of mouth-watering Temptation, with the hem of her green dress rippling out on the cherry wood floor. If he did not know better, her posture and half-lidded eyes could be considered coquettish. _

Forcing himself to swallow the knot in his throat, he tries to buy time by gently reaching for her hand and pulling her upright _for the sake of his mentality and libido_.

Taking a deep breath, he says in a surprisingly steady and clear voice, "Then we are lucky indeed to be joined by the Spirit of Christmas tonight."

_She blushes. He…smiles. _

(In the background, Matsumoto Rangiku is hissing for a camera.)

Aware of the attention they are garnering, but unwilling to cede to embarrassment _unwilling to let her go _he adds, "Though you take attention away from the main event tonight."

She blinks before she grasps his teasing. "That was not my intention, Byakuya-san." A shyness briefly steals across her cheeks.

He passes her onto Rukia and Renji, the former she greets by embracing on both cheeks.

There was a scandalized gasp from the corner where a few Kuchiki clan members were grouped _the majority did not attend to signify their discontent with the addition of another non-blue blood individual into the clan. _Byakuya is uncertain whether there was breaking porcelain from a teacup being dropped, being stunned as well.

_("Bare shoulders…my goodness." A whisper hissed as the unnoticed family member took in the bold design of the evening gown.)_

"Ah excuse me! This is how they greet close friends in Europe," Orihime explained without embarrassment to a surprised Rukia. Renji decided to break the ice.

"So I don't get a greeting?" he teased Orihime._ Byakuya had a sudden urge to glare at his lieutenant. _

"Oh, guys do receive a greeting too, but I wouldn't dare," Orihime smiled impishly. "Certainly not tonight!" in reference to the couple's engagement "But you can have a hug instead," she chirruped in conclusion.

The party got flowing much faster and more smoothly after her entrance.

She spoke with her _nakama _and all her other shinigami friends.

"_Toushirou-kun, you're taller now!" _

"_I missed you too, Rangiku-san!"_

"_How are you, Ishida-kun, Sado-kun?"_

Byakuya caught snippets and wisps of her conversations. Rangiku, Orihime's self-proclaimed busom sister, was eager to talk about Orihime's dress and the fashion overseas which she enthusiastically wants to introduce to the Shinigami Women's Association.

There was an anticipation, a tenseness among the party-goers, when Ichigo pushed forward _rather eagerly_ to speak with her. He had come to the party with Senna. Rukia shared a worried look with her fiancé.

"_It's nice to see you both again, Kurosaki-kun, Senna-san."_

All the nervousness for nothing. She was smiling, polite…_and happy._

There are no regrets in her countenance as she smiles at the couple before her. _The rest of the evening, Senna had to restrain Ichigo from paying so much attention and conversation time with Orihime. _

"_You seem much happier."_

This observation came from Urahara Kisuke, who along with Shihoun Yoruichi, surprisingly gave Orihime a warm _parental _hug.

"_I am." _came the assured reply.

_The poinsettia can reflower after two months of darkness in autumn._

So he is correct, Byakuya reflects, as he watches Orihime accepting and enthusiastically dancing with nearly all the male shinigami soldiers, who were eagerly asking for a dance with her.

_And no, he is not _jealous. _Kuchikis are never envious. _

She has grown stronger.

She recovered from Hueco Mundo, from Aizen's psychological torture and imprisonment. And now, she has overcome the crippling dependence and yearning for affection from the Substitute.

_It was a nice, satisfying change to see the reversion in roles – Ichigo trying avidly to engage her in conversation or dance, hard-pressed not to take his eyes off her form. _

Byakuya smirked _though there was dissatisfaction within him which he refuses to acknowledge. _

Seeing an opening, he strides forward, pressing a kiss to the back of that delicate hand. 

"_May I have the last dance with you, Orihime?"_

"_The pleasure is all mine, Byakuya-san."_

Byakuya felt immensely better seeing the Substitute gawk at him. _It wasn't just the Substitute, the entire gathering stared at him – them – too. _

_No one fully realised until then that both human and shinigami noble were familiar to such a comfortable extent with each other. None of their interaction is artificial or contrived._

When the dance ended, it is actually Rukia who draws their attention to the mistletoe in Orihime's wreath _smiling cheekily at her brother. _

He looks at Orihime, trying to gauge her feelings, not wanting to force her into something which would end the night on a sour note.

_There is only one right way._

He brushes his lips against both her cheeks. A pinkness spreads from where contact was made.

"_Now I have properly greeted you." _

**A/N **So there we go! I must thank Wikipedia for all the information about poinsettias.

Since Christmas and Boxing is past, I wish you all a Happy 2013!

Copyright of Bleach goes to Tite Kubo. Congratulations to him as well for his upcoming wedding. 


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N **Our first confrontation between our leading Man and his leading Rival! Set shortly after Soul Society's discovery of Byakuya and Orihime's hidden affair.

**Promise **

He was being followed.

_How inconveniencing. … And he knows who is his interloper._

Withholding the urge to sigh or pinch the bridge of his nose, he grounds to a halt, and heard an echoing stop of a pair of sandaled feet some distance behind him.

"Are you finished with this farce … Kurosaki Ichigo?"

Slate grey eyes narrowed in displeasure as the speaker turned around to face the former Substitute Shinigami of Karakura Town. Angry amber mirrored the contempt which was directed at him by his Rival.

In fact, both pairs of eyes share many parallel emotions.

_Scorn._

_Possessiveness._

_Determination._

_Passion._

However, the nobleman is quick to note _with an internal curl of smugness _that his counterpart has an additional sentiment, which is missing within himself.

_Jealousy._

That green bonfire of Envy shone so clearly for the world at large to see – in the creased eyebrows, in the deeper scowl and hardened lines around Ichigo's mouth and eyes, a gritting of the teeth which cannot be hidden.

And the source of such jealousy is currently in the Kuchiki estate's master bedroom, waiting patiently for her Love to return.

Byakuya imagines what his lover could be up to, and wishing himself to be in her arms now instead of this stand-off with the Fifth Division's third seat.

_Perhaps she is combing her fiery tresses with the tortoise-shell comb he gave her two weeks ago._

_Or she could be bathing in the onsen adjacent to his room, the perfumed oils in the water scenting her breasts and body, the steam from the water, curling her hair. _

A sudden, impatient urge to go to Orihime and rudely desert his glowering opponent flares up, and Byakuya tries to rein in the urge to give into his impulses.

"What do you hope to accomplish by trailing me?"

Ichigo barely quenches the desire to smash in that arrogant face and rearrange the much-raved about noble lineaments. _Bastard. _

Byakuya smirks _his Rival's main weakness was allowing his emotions to get the best of him, which is actually the principle reason that the former Substitute still has not secured a Captaincy yet. _

Oh yes, Kurosaki Ichigo can be brilliant. Byakuya can vouch, despite his loggerheads with the other man, that Ichigo has the reiatsu and the power of a Captain-level shinigami, but he is not coolheaded enough. _Brash. Impulsive. Prone to give way to rash instincts. _Ichigo is very much someone who acts alone, who, upon seeing something he deems wrong or immoral, can charge straight into battle and abandon his squad. Byakuya has learned too since Rukia's near execution that questioning the Higher Authorities is necessary from time to time, that the law is imperfect and not always the measuring yardstick to follow. But Ichigo's quality is dangerous _to others, to himself _and very often, carries too much risk.

"Stay away from Inoue."

And those four words _four seemingly simple words _sends the tension between them and their respective reiatsus blazing to new, unprecedented heights.

_Of course, this is the source of their Antagonism. _

_A Woman. _

_How Freud or Romantics or Men and Women of Letters would stroke their proverbial beards and smirk or shake their heads at this finding – disregarding in the meanwhile, their reasonings at coming to this conclusion. _

But contrary to whatever theories, scientific models or aggrandized literary plotlines, this isn't just any woman.

_She is unique._

_She is needed._

_She is the Heart._

And neither will give her up to the Other.

"You'd do well to mind your words, Kurosaki Ichigo. It is only _Her_ regard for you as a _nakama _which stills my hand from killing you."

"Hah! I'd like to see you try, Byakuya! I defeated you on the _Soukyouku _Hill_, _and I can – and will – do it again. Inoue is _not_ yours!"

An elegant eyebrow arched at the audacity of that assertion.

"How is Orihime not Mine?"

Ichigo clenched his teeth at Byakuya's familiar way of addressing the woman he coveted. The orange-haired man has not forgotten the unpleasant discovery of the unlikely couple's hidden affair at an emergency captain and vice-captain meeting.

"We've given ourselves to each other, pledged our Vows to each other. Orihime _chose _me –"

The emphasized word provoked a hissed profanity from Ichigo as he reached for Zangetsu, the white bindings falling away from the black and white blade as he pointed it at the Kuchiki clan's leader.

"I share a longer and deeper connection with Inoue. We've known each other longer than you've been involved with her. And considering your devotion to Hisana-san, Inoue is the one who will be hurt when you tire of her!"

Byakuya is incredulous at such 'logic' and clouded rationale. _He is confident enough in his abilities not to draw his sword at the moment, which would only incite the Substitute to misread such an action to escalate the fight. _

"Frankly, I've no need to explain myself or our relationship to you, but the absurdity of your accusations would be laughable, were it not so insulting."

"And how is it insulting when it is true?" Ichigo retorted, tightening his grip on his zanpakutou. "I promised Inoue, back when we were both living, that I would protect her!"

And it is this statement which causes Byakuya to snap.

"Protect her, you say?" A derisive curve of the lip, and he continues, cobalt irises blazing with restrained fury. "You are the _cause, _time and time again, to be the _source _of her pain. Hueco Mundo was the first and quite an excellent example of just how you've failed to protect her! Do not forget for _whose _sake it was that she was coerced to leave.

Were you there, Kurosaki Ichigo, when she sleepwalked and faced insomnia from her memories of Aizen's torture, months after the Winter War was over?

Where were you, to cheer or comfort her, when Orihime's business faced a hostile takeover or when there was an attempted coup at the echelons of the Management team?

How could you possibly not notice her devotion and love for you for so many, many years? From when she was sixteen until she was twenty-five – nine years, Kurosaki! – she waited for you for nine years! And you took her support, her healing and kindness for granted. _Don't deny it!"_

Byakuya raised his voice at this part when he saw the other man wanting to interrupt.

"If you had simply looked past yourself for a moment, you would have seen it. If you had looked beyond the Memory Rosary" and here Ichigo flinched "you might be the one standing today with her by your side.

… _But you didn't._"

Voice returning to normal, Byakuya regarded the younger man. Anger cooled to a fine steel.

"Four years, we have been together. … And I have been watching her since she was seventeen. Watching how she cried over you, watching her look at your back every time that you left and walked away after she healed you.

No, Kurosaki Ichigo. _You were the one who trivialized his promise to protect her! How many other people have you made such a pledge? How many other _women_ have you sworn to protect, promised to do the same? _

_If that promise to protect is your basis for love, then you have rendered it trivial, common and cheap. _

If there is someone Orihime needs to be protected from, it would be _you_!"

Ichigo growled, resentful.

"You are just toying with her. A rich man like you can get any woman he wants once the novelty wears off. Everyone knows of your famous love to your late wife. Are you saying Orihime can beat that?"

Now that is simply plain baiting, raw and unrefined _and childish_.

"And yet, regardless of my wealth, I want only _her. _

You seem particularly forgetful that Orihime herself is not helpless. She can defend herself against me, if need be, both physically and financially. …

I will never forget my love for Hisana. That is not to say that I cannot love Orihime just as much, if not more."

Taken off guard, Ichigo's eyes bulge in surprise. _Is Byakuya suggesting that his love for Orihime rivals that for Hisana? "if not more…"_

"Do not think that I am unaware of your interference at getting the Central 46 to reject my permission to marry Orihime." Here, coldness flowed.

Ichigo smirked in response at his brief success at getting under Byakuya's skin. The veto for the marriage between a human and a shinigami had been an early victory.

He is determined to win.

"Win?" The pronounced Strawberry realizes that he had spoken aloud.

"I'm surprised that you still think you stand any chance," Byakuya smoothly interjected as he walked away.

"Oi, we're not finished here!"

"Byakuya?" came a familiar, dulcet voice. The bright reiatsu is approaching closer from the main gate to the manor. Ichigo stiffened as he takes in the woman wearing a yellow yukata, a shawl draping her shoulders against the nip of the night. With the lamplight behind her, she all but glows like a dazzling firefly.

"Byakuya? _Anata, _are you there?"

Ichigo winces at the term of endearment. _My love…she calls him 'my love'._

"How can you win, Kurosaki? … You've already lost."

Those were Byakuya's final words as he walked forward to embrace Orihime on the lips.

**A/N **This is actually a point that I've been wanting to make for a while. Ichigo may be the main protagonist, and as such, is entitled to oversized powers and feats of accomplishment. But his pledge to protect everyone is starting to wear on the nerves. (Anyone else in agreement?)

Of course, we could point the finger at the animators for tweaking the manga here and there, but honestly, promises are meant to be special. Orihime's vow to love Ichigo for five lifetimes hasn't been interchangeable among other characters. Let's face it, folks. Orihime can score any guy she wants if she wanted to. Just look at the fanbases for Ulquihime, Ishihime and some of the smaller pairings such as Renhime (there's even Chadhime!)

Remember when Shishigaware Moe, Tsukishima's lackey and errand boy, gets K.O-ed by Orihime's beauty? Haha. XD That was a funny moment. As someone on the forum said, "She [Orihime] can still knock them dead."

Anyways, please R&R.

I've got a few more ideas for P so it might be a few chapters yet before we move on to the next letter.

Are there any suggestions for Q? I actually don't have a word in mind for Q. Thanks _minna-san. _Hope to hear from you all!

Checkmate


	23. Chapter 23

**Passion**

Stern eyes. Uncompromising grimaces.

Discomfort and tension permeated the First Division meeting hall, thick enough to slice.

"There is no way _this_" the Soutaichou's lack of descriptive at the outlier before him, the unacceptableness of the current situation, "can contin-"

A sudden flare of reiatsu.

Just one pulse.

_Defiant. Bright. Burning like a star._

"I won't give him up."

The declaration was hoarse, quiet, but all the more powerful in its diamond-piercing clarity.

_The underlying message: there will be no compromise._

And before the Head Captain or any of the remaining twelve Court Guards could respond, there was an answering pulse.

_Beside the female speaker. Her soulmate. Her hidden-now-out-in-the-open Love._

It was just one flicker.

A normal shinigami may not have the dexterity to interpret it, but that is not the case for all the competent reiatsu-reading Captains gathered here this moment.

_One transient flicker…_

… _of unbridled Happiness._

**A/N **Hello minna-san, I have been absolutely swamped with stuff to do so updating has been – and will likely remain, at least for a while (unless I cut sleep _) – sparse. Hence, this update is short in length in too.

My deepest apologies.

Message to Wolfchick: Oh don't be mad at me. :( I've been the recipient of writer's block, lethargy and simply a lot of assignments, exams and applications.

If any readers missed me, just please note that you have been equally missed…_much missed_.


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